THE  LIBRARY 

OF 

THE  UNIVERSITY 
OF  CALIFORNIA 

LOS  ANGELES 


CARL  RESCUING  THE  DOVE  FROM  THE  HAWK 


THE 


BIG  NIGHTCAP  LETTERS; 


BEING  THE 


FIFTH  BOOK  OF  THE  SEKIES. 


BY  THE  AUTHOR  OF 

THE   SIX  NIGHTCAP   BOOKS,   "AUNT  TAUNTS  8TOBIES," 
ETC.,  Era 


NEW 

D.  APPLE  TON;  4> 

443  ft  445  BROADWAY. 

LONDON :  16  LITTLE  BRITAIN. 
1861. 


ENTERED,  according  to  Act  of  Congress,  in  the  year  1860,  by 

FANNY  BARROW, 

In  the  Clerk's  Office  of  the  District  Court  of  the  United  States  for  tho 
Southern  District  of  New.  York. 


TO 

-,  AND 


YOU  KNOW  •WHO  ; 
THIS   BOOK    IS    MOST    LOVINGLY 


CO 

f-tef^^t-%^  •'•-* 

LIBRARY 


PREFACE. 

IT  Las  always  been  my  favorite  theory, 
that  the  goodness  and  beauty  of  a  truly 
Christian  life  in  children  could  be  taught 
quite  as  effectually  by  combining  the  gay 
with  the  grave,  as  by  being  altogether 
grave ;  for  I  chanced  to  remember  that  I  in- 
variably omitted  all  the  latter  portions  of  the 
story-books  bestowed  upon  me  when  a  child ; 
and  I  have  reason  to  believe  that  human  na- 
ture is  pretty  much  the  same  now  as  then. 

In  each  of  these  little  stories,  it  has  been 


6  PREFACED 

my  single  aim  to  inculcate  a  desire  in  chil- 
dren to  do  good,  to  be  good,  and  to  seek 
prayerful  assistance  from  the  One  source  of 
all  goodness — their  Father  in  Heaven. 

And  now  one  word  about  the  sixth  "book 
of  this  series.  Trembling  with  a  deep  re- 
sponsibility, I  have  ventured  to  write  a  fairy 
story,  (that  enchanted  ground  for  the  little 
ones,)  through  the  whole  of  which  I  trust 
this  thread  of  my  theory  has  run  ivnbro&en. 
It  is  the  last  of  our  little  friend,  Lame  Char- 
ley ;  and  if  the  dear  children  who  have  made 
his  Nightcaps  theirs,  will  bear  him,  and  me 
for  his  sake,  in  affectionate  remembrance,  it 
will  gladden  the  heart  of  their  loving 

ATTNT 


CONTENTS. 


PAGE 

FIRST  LETTER  TO  CHARLEY.    THE  LITTLE  WHITE 

ANGEL,             ......  8 

SECOND  LETTER  TO  HARRY.     HEEDLESS  HARRY,  .  30 
THIRD    LETTER    TO    ANNA.     POOR    RICH    LITTLE 

EVA,      .......  73 

FOURTH  LETTER  TO  GEORGE.     ILLTEMPER,              .  106 

FIFTH  LETTER  TO  CLARA.    THE  ROSE  CROWN,      .  140 
SIXTH  LETTER   TO   JOHNNY.     THE   HUNT  FOR   A 

STEAMBOAT,   ......  161 


%*  The  stories  written  for  the  SEVEN 
CAP  CHILDREN  remaining,  will  be  found  in  "  Little 
Nightcap  Letters." 


BIG  NIGHTCAP  LETTERS. 
THE  FIRST  LETTER. 

INTRODUCTION. 


evening,  when  all  the  children,  after 
the  usual  frolic  with  Crocus  the  cat  and  the 
TEEMENDOUS  DOG,  had  settled  themselves  for 
their  "  nightcaps,"  (their  meaning  of  which 
word,  of  course,  you  all  know,)  the  little 
mother  cleared  her  throat,  and  paused,  for 
she  was  feeling  for  a  letter  that  was  in  her 
pocket. 


10        BIG  NIGHTCAP  LETTERS. 

"  Something  particularly  good  is  coming 
to-night,"  whispered  George  to  Anna. 

"  What  makes  you  think  so  ? " 

tl  Don't  you  see  how  bright  her  eyes  are  ? 
See !  now  she  is  hugging  Charley,  and  kiss- 
ing him ; "  and  unable  to  resist  this  loving 
exhibition,  he  rushed  from  his  seat  to  hug 
and  kiss  Charley,  too,  and  ask  him  if  he  felt 
quite  comfortable. 

Charley  thanked  him  with  a  loving  look, 
and  George  went  back  to  his  seat,  all  in  a 
glow. 

"  Children,"  said  the  little  mother,  "  I  re- 
ceived to-day  a  letter  from  Aunt  Fanny! 
She  says  you  have  given  her  so  many  de- 
lightful stories,  she  thinks  it  is  quite  time  to 
give  you  some  in  return." 


THE  FRIGHTENED  OLD  BACHELOR. 


* 

INTRODUCTION.  11 

"  Did  you  ever ! "  exclaimed  the  children, 
eagerly.  "  What  a  perfect  bird  of  an  Aunt 
Fanny !  How  perfectly  delightful ! " 

"  She  wishes  me  to  ask  how  you  would 
like  her  to  send  you  each  a  story,  that  you 
would  know  had  been  written  especially  for 
you?" 

"  Oh !  oh !  oh !  what  a  capital  idea ! " 
cried  all  the  children,  clapping  their  hands 
at  such  a  rate,  that  an  old  bachelor  opposite 
opened  the  window  and  looked  out  with  a 
spy-glass,  to  see  where  the  fire  was;  and 
nearly  frightened  a  lamplighter  into  fits,  who 
was  just  at  that  very  moment  lighting  a 
lamp  at  his  door. 

This  most  delightful  announcement  made 
the  children  chatter  so  fast,  that  Charley  be- 


12  BIG   NIGHTCAP    LETTERS. 

came  nearly  sick,  laughing  at  what  they  said ; 
for  George  again  called  Aunt  Fanny  a  "  per- 
fect bird !  "  and  Harry  improved  it  by  ex- 
claiming that  she  was  a  perfect  cat  bird ! 
which,  of  course,  meant  something  very  com- 
plimentary. 

"  Won't  she  write  stories  like  a  mice !  " 
cried  Johnny. 

"  And  won't  mamma  read  the  writing 
like  a  precious  kitten ! "  said  Clara. 

"  Well,  I  never  knew  kittens  could  read 
writing  before,"  laughed  Harry. 

"  But,  mamma,"  said  Anna,  "  the  letter 
looks  very  thick ;  is  the  first  story  in  it  ? " 

"Yes,"  said  the  little  mother.  "I  will 
read  what  Aunt  Fanny  says — she  says — 

"  And  now,  dear  children,  what  do  you 


INTRODUCTION.  13 

think  ?  Do  you  remember  the  story  of  the 
'  Doctor '  in  the  first  Nightcap  book  ?  Well, 
that  very  doctor  is  now  a  young  lady ;  and 
she  has  written  a  story  on  purpose  for  our 
dear  little  Charley.  I  think  it  is  very  charm- 
ing ;  and  I  have  sent  it  for  the  very  first  one, 
because  I  well  know  this  will  best  please  his 
loving  brothers  and  sisters.  Sarah,  (the  real 
name  of  the  '  doctor,'  you  know,)  has  tried 
to  write  what  would  most  gratify  Charley's 
swiet  and  tender  nature."  Here  the  little 
mother  stopped,  and  kissed  her  lame  boy, 
and  the  children  murmured,  "  dear,  dear 
Charley."  Then  she  read  on — 

"  You  will  perceive  that  Sarah  has  endea- 
vored to  imitate  the  beautiful  German  style. 
Here  is  her  story.  Give  Charley  a  kiss  for 
us  both  before  you  begin." 


14  BIG   NIGHTCAP   LETTERS. 

And    in  almost  breathless  silence  the 
mother  read  the  titl< 


"THE  LITTLE  WHITE  ANGEL. 

"  Some  children  stood  in  a  group  before 
the  door  of  the  village  school-house  one 
lovely  summer  evening. 

"They  were  all  talking  pleasantly  to- 
gether, from  Kline,  the  son  of  the  rich  and 
proud  Hoffineister,  to  little  blue-eyed  CLrl, 
the  only  child  of  the  poor  baker. 

"  It  is  very  true  that  Kline  wore  a  velvet 
jacket,  richly  embroidered,  while  Carl's  coat 
was  old,  and  his  wooden  shoes  were  rough 
enough,  in  all  conscience ;  but  what  of  that  ? 
If  they  were  good  friends,  what  difference 


THE   LITTLE   WHITE   ANGEL.  15 

did  that  make,  I  should  like  to  know  \  Wait 
till  children  become  grown  people,  for  pity's 
sake,  "before  you  expect  them  to  measure 
each  other's  worth  by  what  they  possess  or 
wear ! 

" '  The  new  schoolmaster,  Meinherr  Fried- 
rich,  comes  to-morrow,'  said  Otto.  'I  am 
so  glad.  I  was  weary  of  that  old  Master 
Hoffman,  with  his  crooked  problems  and 
hard  lessons.' 

"  '  So  was  I,  truly,'  cried  Kline,  who,  al- 
though a  good  merry  boy,  hated  his  books  as 
he  did  medicine. 

"  '  Ah,  thou  didst  always  like  play  better 
than  work,  my  Kline,'  said  Max, '  and  so  do 
I.  Meinherr  Friedrich  will  be  wise  if  he 
keep  me  and  thee  apart  during  school  hours ; 


16        BIG  NIGHTCAP  LETTERS. 

but  come,  see  which  can  get  home  first — one, 
two,  three ! '  and  away  they  all  scampered, 
laughing  and  shouting  as  only  schoolboys 
can. 

"  The  following  day,  the  boys  were  all 
standing  around  the  schoolhouse,  when  the 
door  opened,  and  Master  Friedrich  himself, 
appeared,  and  cried  in  a  cheery,  hearty  voice, 
'  Welcome,  my  children.' 

"  '  Welcome,  master,'  cried  they. 

"  And  now  they  entered  and  too'k  their 
seats,  and  were  quite  still  while  the  good 
master  read  a  short  chapter  in  the  Book 
of  Books ;  and  then  reverently  kneeling, 
prayed  that  the  dear  Jesus  would  guide  him 
in  his  teachings,  and  bless  them,  and  send 
His  Holy  Spirit  to  watch  over  them  all. 


THE   LITTLE   WHITE   ANGEL.  17 

"School  began;  the  thumb-worn  books 
were  brought  out — the  lazy  boys  began  to 
sigh  and  frown,  and  wish  impatiently  for  the 
recess,  and  wonder  why  Latin  dictionaries 
were  ever  invented ;  when,  as  if  by  magic, 
they  found  themselves  listening  to  the  pleas- 
ant voice  of  Master  Friedrich,  and  actually 
understanding  their  lessons,  so  clear  and  sim- 
ple were  his  explanations ;  and  the  time  for 
recess  came,  to  their  great  astonishment, 
long  before  they  had  expected. 

u  When  the  studies  were  over,  the  mas- 
ter drew  from  his  desk  a  box ;  and  whilst  the 
children  gathered  around,  he  opened  it  and 
drew  out  charming  little  pink-and- white  sea- 
shells,  pretty  pictures,  and  many  other  beau- 
2 


18         BIG  NIGHTCAP  LETTERS. 

tiful  things,  which  he  gave  to  the  children, 
with  loving  words. 

"  But  the  most  lovely  thing  of  all,  was  a 
little  porcelain  statuette  of  an  angel.  She 
stood,  so  fair,  so  pure — with  her  small  white 
hands  folded  upon  her  breast,  and  her  eyes 
uplifted,  that  the  children  gazed  enchanted. 

"  '  Oh  the  dear  angel !  the  beautiful  an- 
gel ! '  cried  they  all.  '  Wilt  thou  not  give 
it  to  me,  Master  Friedrich  ? ' 

"  But  the  good  master  smiled,  and  said — 
'  The  little  angel  is  too  lovely  to  be  given  to 
any  boy  who  is  not  good  and  true  of  heart. 
We  shall  presently  see  who  shall  deserve  her. 
He  who  brings  me,  to-morrow,  the  brightest 
thing  on  earth,  shall  have  the  angel.' 

"At  this  the  children  looked  at  each 


THE   LITTLE   WHITE   ANGEL.  19 

other,  as  if  wondering  what  the  good  master 
might  mean ;  but  he  said  no  more,  and  they 
went  home  thoughtful. 

"  The  next  day,  after  the  lessons  (which 
had  now  become  so  pleasant)  were  finished, 
the  children  clustered  around  the  master  to 
show  him  what  they  had  brought. 

"  Some  of  the  smaller  ones  had  picked  up 
sparkling  stones  on  the  road,  and  as  they 
held  them  in  the  sunlight,  were  sure  they 
must  be  something  bright  and  precious. 

"  Some  had  polished  up  a  shilling,  until 
it  shone  like  a  little  crown.  Heinrich 
brought  a  watch-crystal,  which  his  father 
had  given  him,  and  which  he  considered  a 
wonder  of  transparent  brightness ;  and.Kline, 
the  rich  Hoffmeister's  son,  had  brought  a 


20         BIG  NIGHTCAP  LETTERS. 

paste  buckle,  made  to  imitate  diamonds,  than 
which,  in  his  opinion,  nothing  could  be 
brighter. 

"  All  these  things  were  laid  on  the  school- 
master's desk,  side  by  side.  The  shillings 
shone  away  famously,  the  pebbles  and  watch- 
crystal  did  their  best,  but  Kline's  buckle 
was  the  bravest  of  all. 

" '  Ah  !  mine's  the  brightest ! '  shouted 
Kline,  clapping  his  hands. 

"  '  But  where  is  little  Carl  ? '  said  Master 
Friedrich.  '  He  ran  out  just  now.' 

"  All  eyes  were  turned  to  the  door,  when 
presently,  in  rushed  Carl,  breathless.  In  his 
hands,  held  up  lovingly  against  his  neck, 
was  a  poor  little  snow-white  dove.  Some 
crimson  drops  upon  the  downy  breast,  show- 
ed that  it  was  wounded. 


THE   LITTLE   WHITE   ANGEL.  21 

" '  Oh !  master ! '  cried  Carl,  '  I  was  look- 
ing for  something  bright,  when  I  came  upon 
this  poor  little  white  dove.  A  cruel  hawk 
had  wounded  it,  and  I  caught  it  quickly, 
and  ran  here.  Oh !  I  fear  it  will  die ! ' 

"  Even  as  he  spoke,  the  dove's  soft  eyes 
grew  filmy ;  it  nestled  closer  in  Carl's  neck, 
gave  a  faint  cry,  and  died. 

"  Carl  sank  on  his  knees  beside  the  mas- 
ter's desk,  and  from  his  eyes  there  fell  upon 
the  white  dove's  poor  broken  wing,  two 
tears,  large  and  bright. 

"  The  master  took  the  poor  dead  dove 
from  his  hands,  and  laid  it  tenderly  down  on 
the  desk  with  the  bright  things ;  then  rais- 
ing Carl,  he  softly  said — 

" '  My  children,  there  is  no  brighter  gem 
on  earth,  than  a  tender,  pitying  tear? 


22        BIG  NIGHTCAP  LETTERS. 

• 

"  The  boys  were  silent  for  a  moment,  for 
they  felt  that  the  master  had  decided  that 
Carl  had  rightly  won  the  angel,  and  then 
Kline  cried  out — 

" '  Nay,  master,  thou  didst  not  fairly  ex- 
plain to  us.  I  pray  thee  give  us  yet  another 
trial.' 

"'Yes,  dear  master,'  said  Max  'give  us 
one  more  trial.' 

"  '  What  sayest  thou  Carl  ? '  said  Master 
Friedrich. 

" '  Yes,  dear  master,'  answered  the  gene- 
rous "boy. 

"The  good  master  smiled  thoughtfully, 
and  his  eyes  rested  for  a  moment,  lovingly, 
upon  Carl;  then  glancing  round,  he  said — 
'  He  who  brings  me  the  loveliest  thing  on 
earth  to-morrow,  shall  have  the  angel.' 


THE   LITTLE   WHITE   ANGEL.  23 

"  The  children  clapped  their  hands,  and 
departed  satisfied. 

"After  school,  the  next  day,  Kline  was 
the  first  to  run  up  to  Master  Friedrich,  and 
lay  upon  his  desk  what  he  considered  the 
loveliest  thing  in  the  whole  world — his  new 
soldier  cap,  with  the  long  scarlet  feather,  and 
bright  golden  tassel.  Max  came  next,  and 
placed  beside  the  cap  a  small  silver  watch, 
his  last  birthday  gift,  with  a  bright  steel 
chain  attached.  Otto  brought  a  great  pic- 
ture-book, just  sent  him  by  his  godmother; 
Kudolph  a  tiny  marble  vase,  richly  sculptur- 
ed ;  and  so  on,  until  a  still  more  motley  col- 
lection than  before  lay  upon  Master  Fried- 
rich's  desk. 

"  Then  little  Carl  stepped  modestly  up, 


24  BIG   NIGHTCAP    LETTERS. 

and  placed  in  the  master's  hand  a  pure  white 
lily.  The  rich  perfume  filled  the  room ;  and 
"bending  over  the  flower,  and  inhaling  the 
delicious  fragrance,  the  master  softly  said — 
4  My  children,  the  blessed  Word  of  God  says 
— Consider  the  lilies  of  the  field,  how  they 
grow;  they  toil  not,  neither  do  they  spin, 
and  yet  I  say  unto  you,  that  even  Solomon 
in  all  his  glory  was  not  arrayed  like  one  of 
these.  Carl  has  rightly  chosen.' 

"  But  murmurs  arose ;  the  children  were 
not  satisfied;  and  again  they  asked  for 
another  trial.  And  as  before,  good  Master 
Friedrich  inquired — • 

" l  What  sayest  thou,  Carl  2 '  and  he  an- 
swered as  before,  with  generous  haste, '  Yes, 
dear  master.' 


THE   LITTLE    WHITE    ANGEL.  25 

"  l  Now  this  is  the  last  time,'  said  the  mas- 
ter. '  He  who  brings  me  the  bast  thing  on 
earth  shall  have  the  angel.' 

" '  The  very  best  thing  on  earth  is  plum 
cake ! '  cried  Kline,  on  the  third  day,  as  he 
walked  up  to  the  desk,  bearing  a  large  cake, 
richly  frosted,  with  a  wreath  of  sugar  roses 
round  the  edge.  This  he  placed  triumphantly 
before  the  master,  sure  of  the  prize. 

"  '  Nay,  thou  art  wrong  this  time,  Kline/ 
said  Max.  1 1  asked  my  father  what  was  the 
very  best  thing  on  earth,  and  he  laughed, 
and  gave  me  this  golden  guilder ;  the  prize 


is  mine.' 


" '  Ah  !  Jbut  my  father  said  that  the  very 
best  was  a  good  glass  of  Rhenish  wine,'  cried 
Otto,  '  and  I  have  brought  a  bottle  of  it 


26         BIG  NIGHTCAP  LETTERS. 


thirty    years    old ;     the     prize    is    surely 


mine.' 


"  So  they  went  on  till  all  had  placed 
their  offering  before  the  master. 

"  l  And  thou,  Carl  ? '  said  he.  '  What 
hast  thou  brought  which  thou  thinkest  the 
best  on  earth  ? ' 

"  A  crimson  flush  rose  to  the  little  boy's 
forehead,  and  coming  softly  forward,  he  took 
from  his  breast  a  small,  worn  Testament, 
pressed  it  to  his  lips,  and  then  reverently  laid 
it  down  with  the  rest"  as  he  said,  in  a  sweet, 
low  voice — 

" '  My  mother,  dear  master,  says  that 
God's  precious  Testament  is  far  before  all 
other  possessions.' 

"  '  'Tis  thine,  my  Carl ! '  cried  the  master, 


THE    LITTLE    WHITE    ANGEL.  27 

snatching  the  boy  to  his  breast.  *  The  white 
angel  is  thine !  for  there  is  nothing  in  the 
wide,  wide  world  half  so  precious  as  the 
blessed  words  of  Jesus ; '  and  he  placed  the 
aogel  in  the  hands  of  the  trembling  boy. 

"  Kline  knit  his  brows,  and  gazed  with 
anger  and  disappointment  at  the  little  Carl; 
and  the  rest,  seeing  him  do  this,  felt  them- 
selves aggrieved;  but  suddenly  the  cloud 
cleared  from  Kline's  face,  and  rushing  for- 
ward, he  caught  Carl  in  his  arms,  crying — 
'  Forgive  me,  dear  Carl !  now  I  am  right 
glad  thou  hast  won  the  prize ! ' 

"  Ah !  the  blessed  effect  of  a  bright 
example  !  Quickly  joining  hands,  the  chil- 
dren danced  joyfully  around  the  little  Carl, 
who  stood  in  the  midst,  the  white  angel 


28         BIG  NIGHTCAP  LETTERS. 

pressed  to  his  breast,  his  fair  hair  falling  in 
curls  on  his  shoulders,  and  his  blue  eyes  full 
of  holy  tears. 

"  The  good  Master  Friedrich  also  wept 
for  joy,  and  prayed,  from  the  depth  of  his 
pure  and  simple  heart,  that  Jesus  would  bless 
this  lesson  to  the  children's  everlasting  good. 
He  had  turned  away  that  none  might  per- 
ceive his  tears. 

"  But  One  in  heaven  saw  them,  Master 
Friedrich." 

The  story  was  finished,  but  no  one  spoke, 
for  the  tears  were  softly  falling  from  Char- 
ley's eyes ;  and  the  rest  of  the  children,  with 
quivering  lips,  were  gazing  in  his  face.  At 
last  he  said,  in  a  low  voice — "  What  a  lovely 


THE   LITTLE   WHITE    ANGEL.  29 

story !  and  how  sweet  and  good  little  Carl 
was  !  Dear  mamma !  we  will  all.  try  to  be 
generous  and  good,  as  he  was ;  and  we  all 
know  what  a  precious  book  the  Bible  is.  I 
love  Carl;  and  I  thank  Aunt  Fanny  and 
Miss  Sarah  with  all  my  heart,  for  writing 
this  beautiful  story  about  him." 

And  now  all  the  children,  with  subdued 
and  tender  glances,  kissed  their  dear  mother 
and  Charley,  and  went  quietly  to  bed,  think- 
ing of  the  dear  little  Carl,  and  wishing 
softly  to  each  other,  that  their  mother  had 
thought  of  asking  them  to  find  the  "  brightest 
and  loveliest  and  best  thing  on  earth,"  for 
they  hoped  they  should  have  done  just  as 
the  dear  Carl  did. 


THE   SECOND   LETTER. 

HEEDLESS  HARRY. 

For  Harry. 

DEAE  HAREY: — I  have  happened  upon 
an  odd  story  of  a  heedless  namesake  of  yours, 
and  as  you  are  a  dear  head-over-heels  little 
fellow,  I  think  you  will  be  both  amused  and 
instructed  by  reading  it ;  or  at  any  rate,  you 
will  resolve  never  to  cut  any  thing  like  the 
very  extraordinary  capers  the  other  Harry 
did,  either  in  the  vegetable  or  travelling 


HEEDLESS    HARRY.  31 

line.  Once,  when  you  were  a  very  little  fel- 
low and  were  visiting  at  a  cousin's  house  in  the 
country,  you  busied  yourself  all  one  morning, 
pulling  up  radishes,  eating  the  roots,  and 
then  setting  the  tops  back  in  the  earth,  and 
when  the  gardener  came  to  gather  some  for 
tea,  he  found  them  all  .wilted  and  flat  to  the 
ground.  Do  you  remember  how  you  had  to 
run  for  it,  when  he  caught  sight  of  you 
laughing  at  him?  and  how  his  having  the 
rheumatism  in  his  knee,  so  that  he  could  not 
move  fast,  was  all  that  saved  you  from  a 
good  thrashing  ?  I  do.  So  here  is  the  story, 
and  hoping  it  will  be  very  serviceable  in 
helping  you  to  "mend  your  ways,"  I  am 
your  loving 

AUNT 


32         BIG  NIGHTCAP  LETTERS. 

"HEEDLESS   HARRY. 

" '  Oil !  how  I  do  hate  to  write  exercises ! ' 
exclaimed  Harry,  one  Monday  afternoon  in 
the  summer  time ;  '  what's  the  use  ?  they 
are  abominable ! '  and  he  stamped  his  foot 
and  threw  down  his  pen,  clapped  his  hat  on 
his  head,  and  rushed  out  of  the  front  door. 

"  No  wonder  he  was  called  '  heedless ' 
Harry ;  for  he  was  so  thoughtless,  that  he 
never  stopped  one  moment  to  reflect,  when 
he  set  about  doing  any  thing,  whether  or 
not  it  would  get  him  into  trouble ;  and  con- 
sequently he  was  always  in  some  scrape  or 
other.  He  was  old  enough,  certainly,  to 
know  better,  and  pleasant  enough,  in  other 
respects,  to  be  liked  very  much  by  all  who 


HEEDLESS   HARRY.  33 

knew  him.  He  w&s  full  of  fun,  perfectly 
fearless,  and  bore  an  accidental  scratch  or 
tumble  like  a  man.  But,  dear  me !  what  a 
heedless,  careless  little  scamp!  That  very 
morning,  before  school  began,  his  mother  had 
sent  him  into  the  garden  to  gather  vegeta- 
bles. He  cut  the  carrots  so  that  they  would 
stand  up  on  end,  and  with  great  onions  be- 
gan knocking  them  down,  as  if  they  were 
tenpins ;  then  he  had  a  game  of  jack-straws 
with  some  small  slender  beans,  and  ended 
the  vegetable  business  by  stringing  a  dozen 
red  peppers  and  tying  them  round  the  cat's 
neck,  making  her  sneeze  her  head  nearly  off ; 
for  the  poor  thing  went  '  tchitz !  tchitz ! 
tchitz ! '  for  a  quarter  of  an  hour. 

"  When  he  was  tired  of  laughing  at  her,  he 
3 


34  BIG   NIGHTCAP    LETTERS. 

marched  away  to  skip  stones  in  the  brook, 
and  ended  by  slipping  on  the  bank  and  tum- 
bling into  the  water,  and  treating  himself  to 
a  very  thorough  ducking. 

"  Harry  lived  with  his  parents  on  a  large 
pleasant  farm,  about  twenty  miles  from  the 
city  of  New  York.  He  had  never  been  in 
New  York ;  and  this  afternoon,  at  which  my 
story  commences,  when  he  rushed  to  the  front 
door,  he  put  his  hand  in  his  pockets  and  said 
to  himself:  *  I've  a  great  mind  to  run  away !  I 
know  I  shall  catch  it  to-morrow,  about  that  old 
exercise,  and  I  can't  write  it.  I  won't !  now ! ' 

"He  walked  to  the  fence,  and  climbing 
up,  looked  over  into  a  neighbor's  meadow. 

"A  beautiful  white  horse  was  quietly 
grazing,  and  lazily  switching  the  flies  off  his 
back  with  his  long  and  silken  tail. 


HEEDLESS    HARRY.  35 

"  '  Halloo  ! '  exclaimed  heedless  Harry, 
'  there's  Lightfoot !  Jolly !  what  a  chance 
to  go  off  on  my  travels!  I'll  catch  him. 
There  !  now  he  is  drinking  out  of  the  brook. 
I'll  go  and  jump  on  his  back.' 

"  As  usual,  the  little  scapegrace  had  en- 
tirely forgotten  that  the  horse  was  very  swift 
and  spirited,  and  also  that  he  did  not  belong 
to  him  or  his  parents.  So  Harry,  with  one 
bound,  jumped  the  fence,  paying  no  kind  of 
attention  to  a  great  thorn  which  tore  down 
the  leg  of  his  pantaloons  for  half  a  yard,  ran 
up  to  Lightfoot,  caught  him  with  one  hand 
by  his  flowing  mane,  placed  the  other  on  his 
back,  and  tried  to  mount  him. 

"  Horses  are  animals,  but  they  are  not 
stupid  or  fools  for  all  that.  So  Lightfoot, 


36         BIG  NIGHTCAP  LETTERS. 

while  lie  kept  his  nose  in  the  brook,  had  been 
quietly  watching  Harry  out  of  the  corner  of 
his  eye ;  and  when  the  young  gentleman  tried 
to  jump  on  his  back,  the  horse  gave  a  quick 
little  start  to  one  side,  and  a  knowing  flour- 
ish with  his  tail,  which  sent  Mr.  Harry  plump 
into  the  brook  for  the  second  time  that  day, 
and  then  Lightfoot  scampered  off  with  a 
neigh  which  sounded  remarkably  like  a  horse 
laugh. 

"  The  angry  boy  scrambled  up  the  low 
bank  like  a  lame  grasshopper,  and  screamed 
out,  '  You  hateful  old  thing !  I  will  get  on 
your  back !  see  if  I  don't ! '  So  he  cut  a 
stout  branch  from  a  tree,  stripped  it,  made 
it  whistle  through  the  air,  and  with  a  spite- 
ful chuckle  advanced  once  more  upon  Light- 
foot. 


HEEDLESS    HARRY.  37 

"  The  horse  gave  another  neigh.  Harry 
approached  him  softly,  hiding  the  whip  be- 
hind him,  smoothed  his  neck,  and  patted  his 
side,  and  then,  with  a  sudden  spring,  leaped 
upon  his  back. 

"Lightfoot  stood  perfectly  still.  Then 
Harry  clucked  his  tongue  against  his  palate 
to  coax  him  to  go. 

"But  the  horse  pretended  not  to  hear 
him.  '  Get  up !  Get  up ! '  cried  Harry. 
*  Come  now,  get  up,  I  tell  you.' 

"  Lightfoot  went  on  eating,  as  if  there  was 
nobody  within  a  mile  of  him. 

"Harry  became  more  and  more  impa- 
tient ;  he  thumped  the  horse  with  his  knees, 
and  drummed  with  his  heels,  and  finding 
that  did  no  good,  he  raised  the  switch  to 
strike  him. 


38  BIG   NIGHTCAP   LETTERS. 

i 

"Lightfoot  was  a  '  cute '  Yankee  horse,  he 
wasn't  *  raised '  in  Vermont  for  nothing ;  so 
when  he  caught  sight  of  the  switch,  he 
ducked  his  head,  and  off  went  Harry  like  a 
flash  of  lightning,  and  found  himself  sprawl- 
ing on  the  grass. 

"  You  would  think  that  was  enough ;  and 
that  Harry,  after  all  these  gymnastics,  would 
go  home  like  a  boy  that  had  some  sense 
pounded  into  him  by  all  these  hard  knocks. 
Not  at  all.  Up  he  sprang,  ran  to  Lightfoot, 
and  jumped  for  the  third  time  upon  his 
back. 

" '  Get  up !  Get  up  !  you  goose ! '  he  cried. 
This  time  the  horse  heard  him,  without  any 
doubt ;  he  gave  a  flourish  with  his  long  tail, 
cleared  the  fence  with  a  bound,  and  rushed 


HEEDLESS    HARRY.  39 

down  the  road  like  an  arrow  shot  from  a 
bow. 

"  And  now  our  young  friend  would  gladly 
have  dismounted,  but  that  was  easier  thought 
of  than  done.  To  get  off  a  horse  in  full  gal- 
lop may  not  be  difficult,  if  you  are  not  par- 
ticular whether  you  come  down  on  your 
heels  or  your  head.  Harry  reflected,  that 
though  possibly  his  head  might  be  harder 
than  the  stones  in  the  road,  and  the  stones 
would  be  hurt  the  most,  yet  there  was  rather 
a  chance  that  the  stones  might  crack  his 
head  instead,  so  he  concluded  to  hold  on  if 
he  could. 

"  On  dashed  Lightfoot  for  miles  and  miles, 
with  Harry  clinging  for  dear  life  to  his  neck 
and  mane.  At  last  they  approached  a  large 


40  BIG   NIGHTCAP    LETTERS. 

town,  and  Lightfoot  stopped  of  his  own  accord 
at  a  public  house. 

"Out  came  the  landlord,  staring  with 
surprise,  and  lifted  Harry  off,  half-dead  with 
fatigue  and  fright,  while  the  hostler  led  the 
horse  to  the  stable. 

"  After  the  heedless  boy  had  washed  his 
face  and  brushed  his  clothes,  he  felt  better, 
but  desperately  hungry ;  there  was  no  fun  in 
that ;  so  he  concluded  to  hunt  up  a  dinner. 

"  When  he  entered  the  dining-room,  the 
people  looked  at  him  from  head  to  foot.  Of 
course  this  was  because  they  were  admiring 
him,  he  thought ;  so  he  drew  himself  up,  and 
putting  on  an  air  of  dignity,  as  if  he  was  a 
gentleman  on  his  travels,  he  said :  '  I  want 
my  dinner.  Bring  me  a  beefsteak,  some  po- 
tatoes, and  an  apple-dumpling/  - 


HEEDLESS   HA11RY.  41 

"  At  these  words  the  landlord  advanced, 
put  his  hand  on  Harry's  shoulder,  and  said : 
'  Who  are  you  ?  ' 

"  Harry  preferred  eating  to  talking  just 
then,  so  he  answered :  '  Give  me  a  beefsteak 
directly.  When  I  have  eaten  my  dinner  I 
will  tell  you  my  history.' 

" '  Una !  we'll  see — tell  it  to  me  this  in- 
stant, or  you  may  get  your  dinner  as  you 
can,  like  a  gipsy  under  a  fence — but  you 
won't  have  any  here.' 

" '  I  will  have  it,'  cried  Harry,  in  a  rage. 

"  *  You  shan't ! '  said  the  landlord. 

"' I  will!'  cried  Harry. 

" '  John,'  said  the  landlord  to  the  waiter, 
'  I  forbid  your  bringing  any  dinner  to  this 
impertinent  little  scamp.' 


42  BIG   NIGHTCAP   LETTERS. 

u  c  Impertinent  yourself! '  screamed  Har- 
ry, nearly  beside  himself  with,  passion  ;  and 
he  seized  a  glass  to  throw  it  in  the  landlord's 
face. 

"At  this  riotous  noise,  some  more  ser- 
vants and  the  landlady  rushed  into  the  room ; 
and  the  latter  screaming  out,  'You  little 
wretch ! '  and  snatching  up  a  broomstick, 
rushed  full  tilt  at  Harry,  who,  concluding 
that  it  was  best  not  to  wait  for  the  fight, 
jumped  over  the  table,  darted  out  of  the 
door,  and  flew  up  the  street. 

"  He  ran  for  a  long  time,  as  if  a  mad  dog 
were  after  him,  until  he  had  gained  the  out- 
skirts of  the  town,  and  stopping,  breathless 
and  exhausted,  began  to  reflect  upon  his 
situation. 


HEEDLESS    HAERY.  43 

"  We  always  make  remarkably  wise  re- 
flections when  we  are  suffering  from  our  mis- 
conduct. Harry  began  to  think  he  had  been 
acting  very  like  a  donkey,  and  would  very 
willingly  have  returned  home,  and  taken  to 
studying  his  hated  lessons. 

"  Mght  was  now  approaching ;  the  twi- 
light deepened  and  darkened ;  and  it  was 
only  by  the  stars  which  came  peeping  out 
one  by  one,  that  he  could  see  his  way.  A 
strange  feeling  of  dread  and  loneliness  came 
over  him,  and  he  was  rejoiced  at  last  to  see 
dimly  before  him  a  large  barn.  Jumping 
the  fence,  he  went  up  and  tried  the  door ; 
fortunately  it  was  open,  and  our  heedless 
friend  was  glad  enough  to  throw  himself 
down  on  a  heap  of  fragrant  hay,  and  spite 


44  BIG   NIGHTCAP    LETTERS. 

of  his  hunger,  was  soon  in  a  dreamless 
sleep. 

"  The  dismal  screech  (for  it  isn't  crow- 
ing) of  one  of  those  long-legged  Shanghai 
roosters,  awoke  him  just  as  the  dawn  was 
streaking  the  sky ;  and  shaking  the  hay  from 
his  dress,  Harry  went  out  into  the  road 
again. 

"  He  was  walking  along,  wondering 
whether  he  should  ever  see  home  again.  A 
market- wagon  came  up  behind  him,  and  he 
turned  to  inquire  his  way. 

"  '  "Where  do  you  come  from  ? '  said  the 
market  man.  Harry  told  him.  '  Bless  my 
wig ! '  said  the  man,  '  you  can't  get  home  to- 
day, no  how  you  can  fix  it.  Come  with.  me. 
I'm  going  to  York  to  sell  my  sass,  and  to- 
morrow I  will  take  you  half-way  home.' 


HEEDLESS    HARRY.  45 

" '  Jolly  !  that's  a  good  fellow,'  cried  Har- 
ry, brightening  up,  i  and  you'll  be  a  better 
fellow  yet,  if  you'll  give  me  one  of  these  rosy- 
cheeked  apples ;  I'm  hungry  enough  to  swal- 
low the  horse  and  wagon.' 

"  '  Massy  sakes !  air  you  ?  Well,  eat  one 
out  each  basket.  'Twon't  make  any  differ- 
ence ;  they  don't  count  apples.' 

"  So  the  heedless  boy  went  into  the  apple- 
eating  business  with  all  his  teeth ;  and  before 
he  had  made  a  finish  of  it,  they  had  crossed 
the  Jersey  City  ferry,  and  rumbled  into  the 
streets  leading  to  Washington  Market,  where 
the  market  man  speedily  disposed  of  his  fruit 
and  vegetables,  which  he  called  'sass.'  When 
he  had  concluded  this  business,  he  took  Har- 
ry down  into  one  of  the  cellars,  where  he  or- 


46         BIG  NIGHTCAP  LETTERS. 

dered  a  nice  breakfast,  and  strange  to  say, 
Harry  had  some  inside  room  left,  for  he  did 
his  part  in  clearing  the  plates  in  fine  style. 

"  After  that,  they  went  to  a  public  house, 
where  the  good  market  man  left  Harry,  as 
he  had  some  business  in  a  distant  part  of  the 
city ;  but  he  charged  the  boy  on  no  account 
to  leave  the  house  till  he  returned.  Harry 
promised  he  would  not. 

"  When  he  was  gone,  Harry  put  his  nose 
out  of  the  window.  The  day  was  clear  and 
beautiful,  and  at  the  end  of  the  street  he 
could  see  the  water. 

'"Dear  me,'  said  Harry  to  himself,  *  what's 
the  harm  of  going  to  look  at  the  water.  It's 
a  real  ocean.  I've  never  seen  the  ocean.  I'll 
just  take  one  peep  and  come  back.' 


HEEDLESS    HARRY.  47 

"  Down  lie  went  to  the  edge  of  the  pier, 
and  sat  upon  the  end,  to  stare  around  him. 
A  steamboat  coming  quickly  alongside,  one 
of  the  waves  she  made  flew  up  in  Harry's' 
face,  and  splashed  him  from  top  to  toe.  He 
jumped  up  in  such  a  particular  hurry,  that 
a  sailor  on  a  large  ship  on  the  other  side, 
burst  out  laughing,  saying,  '  Are  you  afraid, 
Mr.  Sugar  Candy  ? ' 

1  "  *  Afraid !  I ! '  cried  Harry,  indignantly, 
and  turning  round  suddenly,  his  foot  tripped 
against  a  stone,  and  he  tumbled  over  back- 
wards into  the  water. 

"  Harry  opened  his  mouth  to  bawl,  but 
instead  of  that,  had  it  well  filled  with  salt 
water.  The  sailor  ran  faster  than  a  lamp- 
lighter, jumped  in  the  water,  caught  Harry 


48         BIG  NIGHTCAP  LETTERS. 

by  the  collar,  and  dragged  him  on  shore,  and 
set  him  down  in  the  sun  to  dry. 

"  While  Harry  was  drying,  the  sailor 
asked  him  all  manner  of  questions,  and  soon 
had  his  whole  history.  Then  the  cunning 
fellow  invited  him  to  dinner ;  and  heedless 
Harry,  delighted  to  get  on  board  a  great 
ship,  went  with  him,  never  thinking  again 
of  the  kind,  generous  market  man. 

"  And  now,  boys,  and  girls  too,  read  for- 
your  benefit  what  happened  next.  The  old 
sailor  was  commissioned  to  find  one  or  two 
cabin  boys  for  his  ship,  which  sailed  that 
very  evening,  as  soon  as  the  tide  served. 
Harry  was  strong  and  quick — Harry  was 
fearless — Harry  had  run  away  from  home — 
Harry  wanted  to  see  the  world — Harry  was 
the  boy,  the  very  dandy,  for  a  cabin  boy ;  so 


HEEDLESS    HARRY.  49 

the  sailor  proposed  that  Harry  should  con- 
tinue his  travels  in  his  company. 

"  *  Where  are  you  going  ? '  said  our  young 
friend. 

"  '  To  Senegal,'  said  the  sailor. 

"  '  And  what  sort  of  a  place  is  Senegal  ? ' 

" '  Senegal,'  answered  the  sailor,  '  is  a 
most  magnificent  country,  where  the  rivers 
are  made  of  milk,  and  the  mountains  of  sugar. 
The  rain  is  composed  of  lemonade,  and  the 
birds  fall  down  from  the  trees  all  stuffed  and 
roasted,  ready  to  eat,  from  morning  till  night. 
The  trees  are  covered  with  sugar-plums ;  and 
all  the  streams  are  full  of  goldfishes,  which 
come  when  you  whistle  to  them.  They  are 
real  gold,  and  used  for  money  by  the  inhabit- 
ants! ' 

4 


50  BIG   NIGHTCAP   LETTERS. 


44  4 


But  —  do  they  ever  write  exercises 
there  f '  asked  Harry,  with  a  cunning  twinkle 
in  his  eye. 

"  '  NEVEK  ! '  cried  the  sailor,  who  saw 
what  the  trouble  was  with  the  silly  "boy. 
*  The  king  of  this  delightful  country  has  ex- 
pressly forbidden  it.  He  has  burned  down 
all  the  colleges  and  blown  up  all  the  schools.' 

" '  Jolly ! '  cried  Harry,  snapping  his  fin- 
gers, 'that's  the  country  for  me!  I'll  go 
with  you,  sure  pop  ! ' 

"  You  perceive  that  heedless  Harry  did 
not  use  very  elegant  language,  but  as  a  true 
historian,  I  must  tell  you  of  persons,  places, 
and  things  just  as  they  are,  and  I  hope  your 
good  sense  will  teach  you  to  avoid  all  such 
vulgarities. 


HEEDLESS    HARRY.  51 

"  The  sailor,  taking  advantage  at  once  of 
Harry's  delight  in  his  account  of  Senegal, 
carried  him  to  the  captain,  and  making  an 
awkward  bow,  said  :  '  Captain,  here  is  a  new 
hand.' 

"  '  Good ! '  cried  the  captain.  '  He  looks 
strong.  I  hope  he  won't  die  of  weariness 
and  fatigue,  like  the  other  ones.' 

"  At  these  words,  Harry  "began  to  feel 
rather  uncomfortable.  '  What ! '  said  he  to 
the  sailor,  as  -they  left  the  cabin,  *  do  boys 
have  to  work  on  board  your  ship  ? ' 

" c  Sartain,  for  sure ;  all  the  time,'  said  the 
sailor,  laughing. 

" '  I  want  to  go  away,'  cried  Harry,  al- 
ready disgusted  with  the  maritime  service. 

"'What's  that   you  say?'  shouted  the 


52         BIG  NIGHTCAP  LETTERS. 

sailor,  with  a  mocking  air.  '  You  forget,  my 
fine  friend,  that  I  gave  you  a  dinner ;  pay 
me  for  it.' 

"  Harry  shook  his  pockets,  they  were 
empty.  '  If  you  can't  pay,  you  must  stay,' 
cried  the  sailor,  and  just  then  the  ship  left 
the  harbor. 

"The  heedless  boy  burst  into  tears. 
Alas  !  sorrow  and  repentance  came  too  late ! 
It  was  only  ^  now  that  he  remembered  his 
father  and  mother,  probably  made  ill  with 
grief  at  his  disappearance;  and  the  worry 
the  good  market  man  must  be  in,  thinking 
the  boy  to  whom  he  had  been  so  kind  was 
lost,  perhaps  murdered,  in  the  great  and 
wicked  city. 

"  In  the  midst  of  these  doleful  lamenta- 


HEEDLESS    HARRY.  53 

tions,  the  sailor  came  up  and  pulled  Harry 
by  the  ear. 

" '  Come,  you  sniffling  booby !  go  to 
work,'  he  said. 

"  Harry  looked  at  him  in  astonishment. 

" '  My  eyes !  do  you  think  you  can  eat 
and  drink  for  nothing?  Come,  take  this 
broom ;  do  you  hear  ? ' 

"  Our  dismal  friend  took  the  broom,  and 
would  liked  to  have  broken  it  over  the  head 
of  the  brutal  sailor,  but  he  was  not  strong 
enough. 

" '  Will  you  go  to  sweeping  or  not  ? '  cried 
the  sailor,  swearing  in  the  most  terrible 
manner. 

"  '  I  don't  want  to  sweep/  said  Harry. 

"'Don't  want  to?' 


54  BIG    NIGHTCAP    LETTERS. 

" '  No ! '  Harry,  perfectly  red  with  anger, 
threw  down  the  broom,  and  crossed  his 
arms. 

" '  Oh !  that's  the  way  you  behave,  is 
it  ? '  said  the  sailor.  '  Come  to  me,  Susan.' 

"  "With  that  he  caught  up  a  knotted 
rope's  end,  and  gave  Harry  half  a  dozen 
blows  over  his  shoulders.  You  see  blows 
from  Susan  were  given  rather  more  fre- 
quently on  board  ship  than  sugar  plums. 
'  Now,  my  dear  friend,'  said  the  sailor,  '  this 
is  only  the  beginning  of  your  fun.  Now, 
you  know  what  will  happen  if  you  are  idle. 
Susan  is  my  wife,  and  my  name  is  Jack  Bow- 
sprit ;  so  take  care  of  Susan  and  Jack,  and 
pick  up  the  broom  and  sweep  the  deck,  if 
you  don't  want  some  more  of  our  delicate  at- 
tentions.' 


HEEDLESS   HARRY. 


"Poor  Harry  began  to  sweep  with  a 
trembling  lip,  his  heart  swelling  with  rage 
and  misery :  then  he  had  to  wash  the  decks, 
and  after  that  to  scrape  the  carrots  and  peel 
the  potatoes,  and  then  he  was  rewarded  by 
having  a  piece  of  salt  pork  given  him  for  his 
supper,  and  eating  it  with  the  sailors. 

"Harry  was  in  despair.  When  supper 
was  over  he  came  up  and  sat  on  the  deck  to 
think.  Tears  came  thick  and  fast  as  his  mis- 
conduct and  its  miserable  consequences  rose 
up  in  his  mind.  He  knelt  down  for  the  first 
time  since  he  had  left  home,  and  prayed  his 
Heavenly  Father  to  forgive  him,  and  prom- 
ised that  if  he  only  was  permitted  to  see  his 
dear  parents  again,  he  would  indeed  be  an 
obedient,  thoughtful  boy :  he  would  try  to 
be  so  from  that  moment. 


56  BIG   NIGHTCAP    LETTERS. 

"  Meanwhile,  a  fair,  keen  breeze  rose,  and 
continued  for  many  days,  and  the  ship  sailed 
swiftly  on  to  her  destination.  In  a  month 
more  they  beheld  Senegal.  Entering  the 
river,  they  soon  came  to  Saint  Louis,  where 
they  landed. 

"You  can  imagine  how  rejoiced  Harry 
was  to  set  foot  once  more  upon  the  firm 
earth — not  with  the  permission  of  the  cap- 
tain, though :  for  fearing  they  might  keep 
him  on  the  ship  all  the  time,  in  the  dusk  of 
the  evening  he  slid  down  a  rope  that  was 
hanging  over  the  side,  and,  scrambling  on 
shore  without  being  seen,  made  the  best  pos- 
sible use  of  his  heels. 

"  Liberty  is  a  very  fine  thing ;  but  some 
other  things  are  wanted  besides  to  make  it 


HEEDLESS    HABRY.  57 

• 

perfect — dinner,  for  instance,  and  a  house 
containing  a  comfortable  bed  to  sleep  in. 

"  Harry  was  not  much  afraid  at  first  at 
finding  himself  in  a  savage  country,  alone 
and  unprotected.  To  the  heedless,  whatever 
is  new  is  charming. 

"It  was  now  bright  moonlight,  serene 
and  still.  Harry,  exhausted  and  tired  with 
his  flight,  lay  down  on  the  luxuriant  grass. 

<{At  home,  lying  down  in  such  a  bed 
would  have  given  him  so  severe  a  cold  in 
his  head,  that  he  would  have  nearly  sneezed 
and  snuffled  it  off.  Not  so  in  Senegal.  Still 
there  were  other  inconveniences,  for  Harry 
had  not  rested  for  five  minutes,  when  he 
heard  a  stealthy  footstep ;  his  heart  began 
to  beat.  He  had  learned  in  his  Geography 


58  BIG   NIGHTCAP    LETTERS. 

that  Senegal  was  full  of  wild  beasts,  as  well 
as  the  sugar  plums  the  treacherous  sailor 
talked  about.  He  began  to  wish  he  had 
staid  in  the  ship ;  but  if  he  returned,  there 
was  Jack  Bowsprit,  and  there  was  SUSAN  as 
sure  as  a  gun.  It  is  no  doubt  very  disagree- 
able to  be  devoured  by  wild  beasts ;  but  then 
again  it  is  very  painful  to  be  beaten  by  a 
Susan.  Harry  was  sure  of  the  beating  if 
he  returned,  and  he  was  not  quite  sure  of 
being  eaten  up  if  he  remained ;  so  he  con- 
cluded to  stay. 

"  While  he  was  cogitating  all  these  things, 
he  heard  again  the  same  stealthy  tread ;  and, 
in  a  moment,  he  saw  in  the  bright  moon- 
light a  jackal,  about  the  size  of  a  big  dog. 

"  Our  heedless  Harry  was  without  wea- 


HEEDLESS    HARRY.  59 

pons  of  defence,  but  lie  was  by  no  means 
without  courage.  Up  he  sprang,  seized  a 
large  stone,  and  flung  it  at  the  jackal ;  at  al- 
most the  same  instant  the  wild  beast  leaped 
at  him  and  bit  his  leg. 

"  Both  gave  a  howl  of  pain  at  the  same 
moment.  Happily,  Harry  was  not  much 
hurt ;  while  the  jackal,  with  another  cry, 
lay  dead  at  his  feet. 

"  Harry  gazed  at  his  fallen  enemy,  his 
heart  beating  with  excitement;  he  could 
not  help  thinking  that  if  any  thing  a  quarter 
as  bad  had  happened  to  him  at  home,  his 
kind  mother  could  not  have  found  caresses 
and  court-plaster  enough  to  console  him ; 
and  here  he  was,  alone,  and  wounded.  He 
went  to  a  stream  near  by,  and  washed  and 


60  BIG   NIGHTCAP   LETTERS. 

tied  up  his  leg  as  well  as  he  could ;  and  then 
he  began  to  think  how  he  could  pass  the 
night  without  danger.  To  rest  on  the  bosom 
of  the  earth  was  not  safe ;  another  jackal 
might  come  after  the  first  to  help  him  pick 
the  bones.  To  be  sure  he  might  regain  the 
ship — but  SUSAN  ! !  At  last  he  concluded 
he  would  leave  the  earth,  and  climb  a  tree. 
After  much  toil,  and  terrible  scratching  and 
scrambling,  he  managed  to  get  into  an  im- 
mense tree,  and  settling  himself  in  a  fork 
like  an  arm-chair,  he  fell  into  a  troubled 
sleep. 

"The  first  rays  of  the  sun  awoke  our 
hero.  Just  as  he  was  about  to  descend  from 
the  tree,  he  heard  a  slight  noise  above.  He 
looked  up,  and  there  he  saw  (oh !  oh !  what 


THE  ANACONDA  THAT  HARRY  KILLED. 


HEEDLESS    HARRY.  61 

I  hope  you  may  never  see  except  in  a  Me- 
nagerie or  Barnum's  Museum)  an  enormous 
boa  constrictor,  at  least  fifty  feet  long,  sus- 
pended from  the  top  boughs  of  the  tree, 
twisting  about.  With  a  fierce  and  horrible 
hiss,  which  froze  the  blood  in  Harry's  veins, 
he  twisted,  and  turned,  and  looked  at  the 
terrified  boy. 

"  Harry  screamed  aloud.  He  had  read 
of  this  dreadful  monster,  how  he  thought 
nothing  of  swallowing  a  bull  whole  for  his 
breakfast;  and,  of  course,  our  young  friend 
would  be  only  a  side  dish — a  mere  trifle. 
The  boa  advanced  towards  him  with  another 
dreadful  hiss,  which  seemed  to  say — '  Here's 
a  nice  little  mouthful !  wait  for  me.' 

"  But  Harry   was  determined  to  make 


62        BIG  NIGHTCAP  LETTERS. 

one  desperate  attempt  to  postpone  the  feast. 
He  slid  down  the  trunk  of  the  tree  like 
lightning,  and  when  he  stood  on  the  ground 
he  did  not  stop  to  ascertain  which  way  the 
wind  blew,  but  ran  like  a  rail  car,  under  full 
steam,  panting  and  screaming  very  much  as 
they  do. 

"  All  at  once  he  stopped  short,  for  a  ter- 
rible roaring,  like  an  immense  peal  of  thun- 
der, shook  the  earth.  What  was  it  ?  Oh, 
mercy!  it  was  a  great  lion  who  was  just 
waking  up. 

"  "What  was  the  luckless,  heedless  boy  to 
do  ?  Between  the  lion  and  the  boa  constric- 
tor, Harry  was  certainly  lost.  Whichever 
was  to  eat  him,  it  was  certain  he  would  make 
a  breakfast  for  one  of  them ;  for  on  turning 


THE  LION. 


HEEDLESS    HARRY.  63 

his  head,  he  saw,  to  his  increased  horror,  that 
the  monstrous  snake  had  followed  him ;  and 
at  the  same  moment  an  enormous  lion  ap- 
peared running,  making  bounds  as  high  as 
the  arch  of  a  bridge. 

"  Harry  threw  himself  on  his  knees.  For 
one  moment  he  was  a  prey  to  the  most  agon- 
izing despair.  Then  he  clasped  his  hands  to- 
gether, and  implored  for  pardon  for  all  his 
faults ;  and  then  rising,  with  a  white  and  ter- 
ror-stricken face,  he  endeavored  to  await 
with  fortitude  the  coming  of  his  cruel  fate. 

"  But  now  a  very  remarkable  thing  hap- 
pened. Harry,  nearly  petrified  with  amaze- 
ment, saw  the  lion  and  boa  advance  with 
savage  fierceness  upon  each  other ! 

"  Oh !  then  he  thanked  God  in  his  heart ! 


64         BIG  NIGHTCAP  LETTERS. 

He  carefully  crept  to  one  side,  and  watched, 
with  an  eagle-like  glance,  what  would  happen 
next. 

"  With  a  wild  roar  and  savage  bound, 
the  lion  sprang  upon  the  serpent,  and  tried 
to  tear  him  in  pieces,  while  the  boa,  hissing 
like  a  thousand  geese,  twisted  himself,  fold 
after  fold,  round  the  body  of  his  enemy,  crush- 
ing him,  squeezing  him,  and  rolling  over  till 
his  bones  cracked.  The  angry  roar  changed 
into  a  cry  of  despair  and  frenzy.  Soon  that 
cry  became  weaker  and  weaker,  fainter  and 
fainter,  then  ceased  altogether — the  lion  was 
dead. 

"  The  monstrous  serpent,  without  waiting 
to  lay  the  table,  or  call  for  mustard,  licked 
his  prey  all  over,  and  then  swallowed  him 
whole. 


HEEDLESS    HARRY.  65 

"  You  will  ask,  perhaps,  why  Harry  did 
not  run  away.  He  had  two  excellent  rea- 
sons. The  first  was,  he  did  not  know  where 
in  this  part  of  the  world  to  run ;  he  might 
find  a  tiger  at  the  very  next  turn ;  and  the 
second,  that  he  was  too  frightened  to  move. 

"  So  Harry  stood  by  and  witnessed  this 
ruthless,  shocking  spectacle,  to  the  end,  his 
heart  beating  as  if  it  would  leap  out  of  his 
breast ;  and  when  the  boa  had  finished  his 
frightful  meal,  the  poor  little  fellow  observed 
that  the  monster  was  so  gorged,  he  could 
scarcely  move,  and  that  in  a  few  moments 
more  he  was  fast  asleep. 

"  '  There  is  one  good  thing,'  he  said  to  him- 
self, c  the  awful  thing  don't  care  to  breakfast 
twice,  so  I  am  safe  for  the  present.' 
5 


66         BIG  NIGHTCAP  LETTERS. 

"  As  the  boa  seemed  perfectly  helpless, 
he  conceived  a  splendid  but  bold  idea,  for 
he  was  by  no  means  a  timid  child. 

"  He  approached  and  stamped  upon  the 
tail  of  the  reptile,  who  remained  immovable ; 
then  he  made  a  cord  of  a  vine  that  was  grow- 
ing near,  with  a  running  knot  at  the  end, 
and  slipping  this  round  the  boa's  neck,  and 
drawing  it  with  all  his  might,  he  strangled 
the  serpent. 

"  Hardly  had  he  concluded  this  brilliant 
achievement,  when  he  heard  the  galloping 
of  horses.  Terrified  and  trembling,  he  wait- 
ed half  in  hope  and  half  in  fear  for  what  was 
to  come,  when  in  a  few  moments,  to  his  great 
joy,  he  beheld  some  officers  of  the  marine 
service,  whom  he  was  sure  were  Americans, 
approaching  him. 


HEEDLESS    HARRY.  67 

"  What  was  their  astonishment  at  seeing 
a  little  boy  standing,  pale,  and  with  eyes 
wild  and  distended  with  excitement,  over 
the  dead  body  of  an  enormous  snake. 

"  '  Good  gracious ! '  exclaimed  the  one 
who  appeared  to  be  the  captain,  *  what  on 
earth  are  you  doing  with  that  amiable  crea- 
ture?' 

"  Harry,  with  his  eyes  full  of  tears,  sim- 
ply told  his  history. 

"The  officers  were  very  much  affected. 
They  belonged  to  an  American  ship  of  war 
that  was  just  about  returning  home. 

"  '  Would  you  like  to  go  back  with  us  ? ' 
said  the  captain,  kindly. 

"  '  Oh,  Captain ! '  cried  Harry,  l  gladly 
will  I  go  with  you,  but — ' 


68  BIG  NIGHTCAP    LETTERS. 


u  t 


But  what  ? '  asked  the  captain. 

"  '  I  want  you  to  promise  me  that  I  shan't 
be  beaten  by  Susan.' 

"  '  What  on  earth  do  you  mean  ? '  cried 
the  captain,  as  he  and  the  rest  burst  into  a 
laugh. 

"  Harry  explained  how  Jack  Bowsprit 
used  to  beat  him  with  a  rope's  end,  which  he 
called  his  wife,  Susan,  and  how  he  hated  Su- 
san worse  than  poison. 

"  They  all  laughed  again  at  this,  and  the 
captain  promised  that  Susan  Should  be 
thrown  overboard  as  far  as  he  was  concerned, 
and  that  he  should  be  taken  safely  home. 

"  So  Harry  went  with  the  officers,  who 
treated  him  as  if  he  was  their  son ;  and  after 
a  prosperous  voyage,  he  arrived  safely  at 


HEEDLESS    HARRY  69 

New  York;  and  money  was  given  him  to 
get  home. 

"That  very  evening  Harry  stood  once 
more  before  his  sorrowing,  almost  broken- 
hearted parents.  "What  did  they  do  ?  They 
did  not  utter  one  word  of  reproach ;  they 
just  opened  their  arms,  and  the  boy  flung  him- 
self upon  their  breasts ;  and  amid  tears  and 
blessings  all  was  forgiven.  But  not  forgotten. 
Oh,  no !  for  Harry,  once  so  heedless,  tried  his 
utmost  to  correct  his  faults,  and  with  God's 
help,  he  succeeded;  and  now  he  is  so  steady, 
industrious,  and  obedient,  that  it  is  almost 
impossible  to  believe  that  he  ever  was  called 

HEEDLESS  HARRY." 

There  was    many  a  roguish,  laughing 


70        BIG  NIGHTCAP  LETTERS. 

look  cast  at  Harry  as  this  strange  story  was 
being  read ;  and  when  it  was  finished,  George 
exclaimed,  eagerly — "  Oh,  mamma !  what  a 
pity  Aunt  Fanny  did  not  know  about  Harry, 
and  the  old  black  cook,  and  the  dishcloth ! 
Wouldn't  she  have  laughed  ? " 

"  Tell  us  about  it,  Harry,  do !  do !  "  cried 
all  the  brothers  and  sisters. 

The  children  knew  the  story  as  well  as 
Harry,  but  they  delighted  to  watch  the 
sparkle  of  his  eyes,  and  his  animated  gestures, 
for  to  tell  the  truth,  he  did  enjoy  mischief 
beyond  words  to  describe. 

"  Well,"  cried  Harry,  jumping  up,  "  you 
see  I  would  go  down  in  the  kitchen  and  teaze 
the  cook;  and  she  could  never  touch  me 
with  the  broomstick,  because  I  ran  full  tilt ; 


HEEDLESS   HARRY.  71 

and  she  was  very  fat,  you  know,  always  trod 
on  her  dress,  and  sometimes  came  down  flat 
on  her  nose. 

"  "Well,  one  day  she  said — '  If  you  come 
in  the  kitchen  again,  I'll  pin  the  dishcloth 
fast  to  your  jacket!'  I  came  right  lack. 
1  PIN  IT  ! '  said  I,  '  that's  all  I  want.'  So  she 
pinned  it,  and  I  stood  very,  very  still  till  it 
was  done.  Then  I  made  one  jump  in  the  air, 
and  gave  one  tremendous  shout,  and  put 
square  up  stairs  for  mother's  room,  the  cook 
after  me ;  but  I  ran  fastest,  she  was  so  fat. 
I  got  in  the  room  first,  tore  off  the  dishcloth 
— her  best  dishcloth — bran  new,  and  threw 
it  into  the  very  middle  of  the  fire ;  and  she 
had  the  pleasure  of  seeing  the  last  of  her  new 
dishcloth  blazing  up  the  chimney.  So  that's 


72  BIG   NIGHTCAP    LETTERS. 

what  a  cook  gets  when  she  pins  her  dish- 
cloth on  a  boy." 

The  children  clapped  their  hands,  and 
screamed  with  laughter  at  this  story;  and 
they  laughed  still  harder,  when  Harry  put 
on  a  comical,  half-provoked  look,  and  added, 
"  But  you  know  mother  made  me  take  the 
very  money  I  was  going  to  buy  a  new  ball 
with,  and  buy  a  yard  of  crash  to  make 
another  dishcloth  for  the  cook ;  that  crashed 
me,  so  I  don't  think  I  shall  burn  any  more 
for  the  present." 

And  now  the  children,  bidding  each  other 
"  good  night,"  went  skipping  and  dancing  to 
bed,  delighted  with  the  evening's  entertain- 
ment, wondering  who  would  have  the  next 
story  from  Aunt  Fanny. 


THE    THIRD    LETTEE. 

POOR  RICH  LITTLE  EVA. 

For  Anna. 

DEAR  ANNA: — I  have  lately  been  read- 
ing a  book  full  of  pure  and  beautiful  thoughts, 
called  "  Vernon  Grove,"  and  the  other  even- 
ing I  became  acquainted  with  the  authoress. 
She  is  a  most  lovely  lady,  dignified  and 
graceful ;  and  I  had  a  very  delightful  con- 
versation with  her  about  books. 

In  Yernon  Grove  there  is  a  short  story 


74        BIG  NIGHTCAP  LETTERS. 

about  a  dear  little  girl,  which,  story  in- 
terested me  so  much,  that  I  asked  permis- 
sion of  the  authoress  to  copy  it  out  for  you. 
Here  it  is,  somewhat  enlarged  and  altered, 
but  the  main  parts  just  as  she  wrote  it.  I 
know,  dear  Anna,  it  is  exactly  such  a  tender, 
sweet  story,  as  will  most  gratify  your  affec- 
tionate heart;  so  it  is  yours,  with  a  kiss 
from  your  loving 

AUIST  FAOTHT. 

"  POOR  RICH  LITTLE  EVA. 

"  On  a  curtained  bed,  in  a  darkened  cham- 
ber in  the  city  of  Charleston,  not  many  years 
ago,  lay  a  beautiful  lady,  pale — almost  dy- 
ing ;  but,  oh !  how  happy,  for  her  earnest 


POOR  KICH   LITTLE   EVA.  75 

prayer  had  been  answered,  and  God  had  at 
last  given  her  the  blessing  of  a  child,  and 
the  little  tender  life  was  even  now  nestling 
soft  as  a  rose-leaf  in  her  bosom. 

"  It  was  late  in  the  sweet  spring-time, 
which  in  that  southern  country  is  so  beauti- 
ful. A  hushed  and  joyous  stillness  reigned 
in  the  house,  but  every  lip  was  smiling,  from 
the  good  old  black  cook,  who  was  '  so  grad 
missis  ben  got  her  heart's  desire,'  to  the 
funny  little  fellow  with  his  wool  standing  up 
in  kinks  all  over  his  head,  who  ran  of  errands, 
and  who  evinced  his  delight  by  walking  on 
his  kinky  head  all  about  the  yard. 

"Never  was  baby  more  welcomed.  A 
daughter,  too,  just  what  her  parents  desired 
— a  darling  girl  to  be  a  companion  for  her 
mother  all  day  long. 


76         BIG  NIGHTCAP  LETTERS. 

"  The  nursery  was  now  the  most  inter- 
esting and  delightful  room  in  the  house. 
Though  evidences  of  boundless  wealth  and 
exquisite  taste  were  in  every  part,  until  the 
baby  came,  it  was  only  a  grand,  silent,  gloomy 
mansion;  for  no  young  pure  voice  had  awaken- 
ed the  echoes  in  the  stately  halls — no  little  pat- 
tering feet  made  there  delicious  heart-music. 

"  But  now  what  a  magic  change  !  How 
friends  flocked  to  see  the  wonderful  nursery 
which  the  expectant  mother  had  been  so 
happy  in  preparing ;  how  they  peeped  into 
the  bureau  drawers,  and  admired  the  piles 
of  rare  lace  and  snowy  lawn,  which  were  to 
enfold  the  delicate  limbs  of  this  favored 
child. 

"  And  then  the  surprising  and  splendid 


POOR   RICH   LITTLE   EVA.  77 

toys  in  gold  and  silver !  the  beautiful  pic- 
tures already  hung  upon  the  walls,  painted  by 
skilful  artists,  telling  stories  that  she  would 
understand  almost  from  infancy,  of  c  Little 
Ked  Hiding  Hood,7 '  The  Lamented  Babes  in 
the  Wood,'  and  '  Little  Mary  and  her  pretty 
pet  Lamb,  who  ivould  go  to  school  with  her.' 
Ah !  what  a  beautiful  world  was  to  be  opened 
to  the  sight  and  mind  of  that  sweet  spring 
flower. 

"  Every  day  the  good  doctor  came  to  see 
the  mother  and  the  little  baby,  and  every 
day  the  mother  grew  stronger;  and  the 
greatest  delight  of  both  parents  was  to  look 
at  their  new  child,  and  softly  kiss  its  tender 
cheek,  and  feel  the  velvet  touch  of  its  precious 
little  hands. 


78         BIG  NIGHTCAP  LETTERS. 

"Then,  very  soon,  it  grew  so  knowing, 
and  showed  such  surprising  quickness,  far 
beyond  (the  parents  thought)  of  any  baby 
ever  seen  or  read  of  since  the  beginning  of 
the  world.  Of  course  it  was  very  red  at 
first,  but  then  the  red  was  such  a  beautiful 
shade.  It  hadn't  the  least  speck  of  hair; 
but  what  of  that  ?  There  was  a  lovely  ex- 
pression about  even  the  lack  of  its  head; 
really  quite  intellectual. 

-"  Very  soon,  it  would  start  at  an  unex- 
pected noise  or  touch,  and  if  dinner  did  not 
come  at  the  very  moment  it  was  wanted,  lit- 
tle Eva  (for  that  was  her  sweet  name)  could 
cry  in  a  manner  to  astonish  you ;  but  then, 
such  an  excellent  cry !  so  loud  and  strong, 
that  itr  was  certain  she  had  splendid  lungs. 


POOR   RICH   LITTLE  EVA.  79 

And  what  more  could  a  mother's  heart  de- 
sire ?  And  her  precious  treasure  was  watched 
and  guarded  night  and  day  by  a  mother's 
love,  stronger  than  death. 

"  But  what  is  this  ?  The  good  doctor 
watches  little  Eva  as  she  grows,  and  always 
when  he  looks  at  her,  a  sad,  strange  expres- 
sion comes  over  his  face ;  and  one  day,  when 
going  down  stairs,  he  paused,  and  turned  to 
go  back,  but  did  not,  for  he  said  aloud  to 
himself:  ' Not  yet ;  they  cannot  bear  it  yet; 
and  perhaps,  after  all,  I  may  be  in  the 
wrong.' 

"  They  were  both  so  happy — that  young 
father  and  mother !  How  they  pitied  all  the 
poor  married  people  who  had  no  children ! 

"  But  the  next  day  after  this  the  good 


80         BIG  NIGHTCAP  LETTERS. 

doctor  decided  not  to  withhold  the  commu- 
nication, whatever  it  might  be,  from  Eva's 
father  and  mother.  As  soon  as  he  entered 
the  room,  he  said  abruptly :  *  Nurse,  bring 
me  the  child.'  He  stood  by  a  window,  and 
threw  wide  open  the  darkened  blinds.  The 
little  Eva  was  brought  to  him  just  from  her 
morning  toilette,  fresh,  sweet,  and  pure  as  a 
rain-brightened  flower ;  her  long  embroidered 
dress  sweeping  the  carpet,  and  soft  lace  nest- 
ling about  her  tiny  arms. 

"  '  Oh,  dear  doctor  ! '  exclaimed  the 
young  mother,  '  do  not  take  the  baby  there ! 
That  bright  glare  of  light  has  dazzled  even 
my  strong  eyes;  and  how  can  her  feeble 
sight  endure  it  ? ' 
•  "'It  is  necessary,  madam,'  replied  the 


POOR  RICH   LITTLE   EVA.  81 

doctor.  He  seemed  to  be  a  cross  old  fellow, 
but  beneath  his  gruff  manner  was  hidden  a 
great,  kind  heart. 

"  He  took  the  child,  and  having  sent  the 
nurse  away,  turned  from  the  mother,  who  lay 
anxiously  watching  him,  He  gazed  fixedly 
at  little  Eva,  while  he  exposed  her  beautiful 
and  tender  eyes  to  the  bright  glare  of  the 
morning  sun.  His  brow  was  contracted  into 
a  great  heavy  frown,  and  a  short  but  deep 
sigh  escaped  him ;  but  he  never  took  his 
eyes  from  her  face  :  then  he  forced  the  lids, 
with  their  long  silken  fringes,  far  away  from 
the  ball  of  the  eye,  and  little  Eva  was  now 
screaming  with  the  pain  caused  by  this 
rough  and  cruel  treatment.  Alas !  a  deeper 
shade  of  anxiety  crossed  the  doctor's  face, 
6 


82  BIG  NIGHTCAP   LETTERS. 

and  the  hard  and  unfeeling  man,  as  the 
weeping  mother  thought  him,  drew  the  in- 
fant tenderly  to  his  breast,  and  murmured 
in  a  low  tone,  '  Poor  little  thing  I  poor  little 
Tiel/pless  thing  ! '  and  gave  her  back  to  her 
nurse,  and  went  away  without  saying  another 
word. 

"  That  same  evening  the  doctor  came 
again.  It  was  very  unusual  for  him  to  come 
after  dark,  and  his  great  creaking  boots  and 
rough  manner  would  have  broken  in  upon  a 
very  pretty  group. 

"  But  he  went  softly  up  stairs,  and  looked 
in  the  room,  unseen  himself.  There  was  the 
happy  mother  wrapped  in  a  cashmere,  and 
half-buried  in  an  immense  arm-chair,  withf  a 
sweet  motherly  look  upon  her  face,  watching 
her  darling. 


POOR  RICH    LITTLE   EVA.  83 

"  Close  to  his  wife,  Eva's  father  sat,  hold- 
ing her  in  his  arms ;  and,  wonderful  to  tell, 
for  a  man,  holding  her  quite  comfortably ;  for 
he  had  lulled  her  to  sleep  with  a  lullaby  of 
his  own  composition,  the  language  of  which 
was  utterly  unknown  to  the  rest  of  the  com- 
pany. He  was  learning  to  talk  '  baby  talk/ 
and  was  really  getting  on  very  well,  and 
just  now  he  was  looking  extremely  proud 
and  happy  at  his  success  in  soothing  the 
little  one. 

"  Opposite  to  these  happy  parents  sat 
Mr.  Yernon,  a  noble-looking  gentleman,  and 
his  wife,  a  beautiful  lady,  uncle  and  aunt  to 
the  baby;  and,  in  the  distance,  was  the 
faithful  black  nurse,  old  Dinah,  fast  asleep, 
and  quite  as  happy,  in  her  own  opinion,  as 
the  rest  of  the  party. 


84         BIG  NIGHTCAP  LETTERS. 

"  Presently  the  father  laid  the  baby  ten- 
derly down  in  her  beautiful  cradle,  and  while 
gently  rocking  her,  said  softly :  '  I  wonder 
what  the  baby  was  thinking  about  while  I 
sang  to  her  ? ' 

"  *  She  looked  so  wonderfully  wise,'  said 
the  mother. 

"  '  Did  you  ever  come  across  that  lovely 
little  poem — "  "What  is  the  little  one  think- 
ing about  ? " '  said  Mr.  Vernon.  '  I  can  only 
remember  the  last  part  of  it,  though  my  little 
daughter  has  often  read  it  to  me,'  and  he  re- 
cited, in  a  sweet,  low  voice,  this  exquisite 
little  fragment : 

"  What  is  the  little  one  thinking  about  ? 
What  does  she  think  of  her  mother's  eyes  ? 
What  does  she  think  of  her  mother's  hair  ? 


POOR   RICH   LITTLE   EVA.  85 

What,  of  the  cradle  roof  that  flies 
Forward  and  backward  through  the  air  ? 
What  does  she  think  of  her  mother's  breast, 
Round  and  beautiful,  smooth  and  white, 
Seeking  it  ever  with  fresh  delight — 
Cup  of  her  life,  and  couch  of  her  rest  ? 
What  does  she  think,  when  her  quick  embrace 
Presses  her  hand,  and  buries  her  face 
Deep,  where  the  heart-throbs  sink  and  swell 
With  a  tender  love  she  can  never  tell, 

Though  she  murmurs  the  words 

Of  all  the  birds, 

Words  she  had  learned  to  murmur  well  ? 
Now  she  thinks  she'll  go  to  sleep  ! 
I  can  see  the  shadow  creep 
Over  her  eyes  in  soft  eclipse 
Over  her  brow,  and  over  her  lips. 
Out  to  her  little  finger-tips  ! 
Softly  sinking — down  she  goes  ! 
Down— she — goes  ! — down — she — goes ! 
See !  she  is  hushed  in  sweet  repose." 


86  BIG    NIGHTCAP    LETTERS. 

"  As  the  doctor  gazed  on  this  lovely  scene, 
and  heard  the  beautifully  touching  words  so 
fitly  spoken,  instead  of  smiling,  he  frowned 
and  sighed,  for  his  heart  was  troubled. 

"  Coming  forward,  he  grumbled  out,  '  A 
family  party,  I  see.' 

"  '  Yes,'  said  the  father,  rising  and  smil- 
ing ;  '  and  no  one  but  yourself  would  find  a 
welcome.' 

"  *  So  much  the  better,'  growled  the  doc- 
tor. '  Nurse,  light  the  gas.' 

"  '  We  have  not  lit  it  yet,'  said  the  young 
mother,  pointing  to  the  two  wax  lights  in  a 
distant  corner,  *  because  they  tell  me  the  eyes 
of  infants  are  very  weak  and  tender.' 

"  The  doctor  took  no  notice  of  this,  only 
nodded  to  the  nurse ;  and  she,  standing  in 


POOR   RICH    LITTLE   EVA.  87 

mortal  fear  that  he  would  cut  her  head  off 
immediately  if  she  hesitated,  obeyed  his 
order. 

"  The  mother  looked  at  her  little  child, 
who  was  still  peacefully  sleeping,  and  then 
shaded  her  eyes  with  her  hand  from  the  sud- 
den blaze  of  light,  thinking  that  though  the 
doctor  seemed  very  cruel,  he  must  be  doing 
what  was  right.  Poor  young  mother ! 

"  '  I  only  need  this  last  test  before  I  tell 
you  what  it  means,1  said  the  doctor.  '  Here, 
give  me  the  child.' 

"  The  father  tenderly  laid  the  little  Eva 
in  his  arms,  though  quite  at  a  loss  to  imagine 
what  experiment  was  to  be  tried.  The  light 
was  certainly  too  strong  to  be  let  suddenly 
into  a  darkened  room,  he  thought ;  but  the 


88  BIG   NIGHTCAP    LETTERS. 

doctor  knew  best.  It  was  strange  that  only 
the  noble-looking  gentleman,  Mr.  Vernon, 
seemed  to  divine  the  meaning  of  the  rough 
but  kind-hearted  man,  bnt  he  knew  only  too 
well ;  he  was  sadly  sure.  I  will  tell  you  why, 
presently. 

"  And  now  the  tender  head  of  the  sleep- 
ing child  lay  helplessly  against  the  physi- 
cian's rough  coat,  encircled  by  his  arm. 

"  Suddenly  he  dashed  some  cold  water, 
that  stood  near,  into  her  face. 

"  Little  Eva  awoke,  and  opened  her  dark 
blue  eyes  immediately  under  the  bright 
stream  of  light.  She  did  not  cry ;  she  did 
not  shrink;  calmly  she  looked  up,  never 
flinching,  never  winking  as  she  lay. 

"  The  doctor  raised  her  nearer  and  nearer 


POOR   RICH    LITTLE   EVA.  89 

to  the  flame ;  he  turned  the  screws,  and  let 
out  each  burner  to  its  fullest  capacity,  and 
passed  his  hands  rapidly  to  and  fro  close  to 
the  child's  eyes,  then  turning  towards  the 
wondering,  panic-stricken  group,  who  were 
slowly  beginning  to  understand  the  meaning 
of  that  fearful  pantomime,  he  laid  her  once 
more  in  her  father's  arms,  and  looking  in  his 
face,  said,  in  a  rough,  broken  voice,  while  a 
great  tear  trembled  in  his  eye — '  God  help 
little  Eva, — SHE  is  BLEOX' 

"  The  doctor  went  away  that  night  with 
the  sorrowful  wail  of  the  poor  parents  smit- 
ing his  heart. 

"  He  came  again  and  again,  but  never- 
more in  that  house  did  he  open  the  door 
upon  a  group  so  smilingly  happy,  as  that 


90  BIG   NIGHTCAP    LETTERS. 

which  greeted  him  on  the  fatal  night,  when 
he  told  them  the  dreadful  truth,  that  their 
child  would  never  see  their  faces,  for  she  was 
blind. 

"  And  now  I  will  tell  you  about  Mr.  Ver- 
non.  When  he  was  quite  a  young  man,  rich, 
handsome,  and  surrounded  with  friends,  he 
was  taken  ill  with  a  dreadful  fever,  which 
left  him  totally  blind.  For  a  long,  long  time 
he  murmured  at  God's  will,  and  refused  to 
believe  there  was  any  thing  left  worth  living 
for ;  but  God's  ways  are  not  our  ways,  and  in 
His  own  good  time  He  so  softened  the  wilful 
heart  of  the  blind  man,  so  that  he  became 
not  only  resigned,  but  happy. 

"After  a  few  years,  God  gave  him  a 
beautiful  wife,  who  loved  him  more  because 


POOR   RICH    LITTLE    EVA.  91 

of  the  affliction  which  made  Mm  so  depend- 
ent upon  her  loving  care ;  and  oh !  how  I 
hope  that  all  who  are  reading  this  true  story 
will  have  a  tender  pity  for  those  upon  whom 
God  has  caused  outward  darkness  to  fall. 
They  cannot  see  the  sunshine,  or  the  beauti- 
ful flowers — let  them/e^  the  warm  sunshine 
of  a  loving  heart. 

"  In  due  course  of  time  Mr.  Vernon  had 
two  lovely  children,  the  elder  a  pretty  little 
maiden,  with  deep  blue  eyes,  and  dark,  wavy 
hair,  whose  sweet  name  was  Ruth.  The  dear 
little  girl  was  six  years  old  before  the  other 
darling  came  to  gladden  his  parents'  heart, 
and  having  no  companions  but  her  blind 
father  and  gentle  mother,  she  grew  to  be 
quite  a  dignified  little  woman.  None  so 


92  BIG   NIGHTCAP    LETTERS. 

proud  and  happy  as  Ruth,  when  she  was 
guiding  her  blind  father ;  none  knew  better 
all  his  favorite  walks  in  and  around  the 
beautiful  country  place  where  they  lived ; 
and  her  gentle,  patient  ways  made  her  the 
very  darling  of  his  heart. 

"  In  a  few  years  there  was  another  little 
being  in  the  world,  to  whose  happiness  Ruth 
was  necessary ;  and  that  was  her  poor  blind 
cousin,  Eva,  and  though  Ruth's  parents 
missed  her  sadly,  they  would  often  give  up 
their  darling,  and  send  or  take  her  into  the 
city,  to  visit  and  comfort  and  amuse  Eva. 

"  Ruth  understood  Eva  better  than  any 
one  else,  because  she  had  been  her  dear  blind 
father's  constant  companion ;  and  Eva  loved 
her  with  all  her  heart ;  she  knew  her  step  ; 


POOR   RICH   LITTLE   EVA.  93 

she  would  hear  it  before  any  one  else  did, 
and  the  color  would  rush  in  her  face,  and 
she  would  wait  with  beating  heart  till  the 
door  opened,  and  then  she  would  rush  to 
her,  throw  her  arms  round  her  neck,  and 
cry, . '  Oh,  dear  Ruth !  darling  Ruth  ! '  and 
kiss  her  twenty  times,  and  Ruth  would  kiss 
Eva  just  as  many,  and  then  they  would  sit 
down  close  together,  and  have  such  a  nice, 
happy  talk !  for  Ruth  had  to  tell  all  about 
the  chickens,  and  Dandy,  the  pony,  who 
loved  sugar  so  dearly;  and  how  she  had 
hemmed  six  pocket-handkerchiefs  for  her 
dear  father,  and  most  wore  a  hole  in  her 
little  thimble ;  and  how  her  little  baby 
brother  had  scrabbled  off  with  old  Dobbin's 
bran-bag,  just  as  the  poor  old  horse  was 


94  BIG   NIGHTCAP   LETTERS. 

going  to  eat  his  dinner,  and  poked  his  own 
dear  little  head  in  it,  and  when  he  pulled  it 
out,  the  bran  was  all  over  his  face,  making 
him  look  as  if  he  was  covered  with  freckles ; 
which  funny  caper  made  Eva  laugh  like  '  any 
thing.7 

"  And  when  the  talking  was  over,  Ruth 
read  to  little  Eva,  for  all  toys  were  useless  to 
the  "blind  child ;  but  her  books  were  doubly 
dear,  and  Ruth  was  never  tired  of  reading 
to  her ;  so  while  she  staid,  Eva  was  as  happy 
as  it  was  possible  to  be. 

"  One  day  the  good  doctor  brought  a 
celebrated  occulist  to  see  Eva.  An  occulist 
is  a  physician  who  cures  diseases  of  the 
eyes,  and  devotes  his  whole  time  and  talent 
to  that  precious  and  delicate  part  of  the  hu- 
man frame. 


POOR  RICH   LITTLE   EVA.  95 

"The  occulist  examined  her  eyes  very 
carefully,  and  then  said :  '  After  a  few  years 
I  can  perform  an  operation  on  Eva's  eyes 
that  may  give  her  sight ;  but  it  will  be  a 
very  painful  one,  and  perhaps  I  may  not  suc- 
ceed. If  this  dear  little  child  were  mine,  I 
would  almost  rather  let  her  remain  blind 
than  give  her  such  terrible  pain,  which  may 
end  in  disappointment.' 

"  But  oh !  what  a  blessed  hope !  her  pa- 
rents would  not  see  the  dark  side ;  they  dwelt 
upon  the  happiness  it  would  be  for  little 
Eva  to  see ;  and  one  day  her  father  took  her 
upon  his  knee,  and,  fondly  kissing  her,  said : 
'  Eva,  my  darling,  would  you  like  to  see  the 
beautiful  sunlight  and  sweet  flowers  ? ' 

" '  O  papa !  yes !  yes !  but,  most  of  all, 


96  BIG   NIGHTCAP   LETTERS. 

I  want  to  see  you  and  mamma,  and  Kuth 
and  Dinah.' 

"  '  Well,  my  darling,  if  you  can  make  up 
your  mind  to  endure  a  terrible  pain,  when 
you  are  older  we  will  have  the  operation 
tried.  It  will  only  last  a  moment,  dear  Eva, 
and  then  just  think !  you  will  see  the  whole 
beautiful  world !  and  know  all  of  us  by  our 
faces,  as  you  now  do  by  our  steps  and  voices ; 
you  will  see  the  birds  flying  in  the  air ;  the 
moon  sailing  slowly  in  the  heavens,  the 
little  twinkling  stars,  and  the  rippling  water, 
and  we  shall  be  so  happy!  so  happy!  I 
will  not  tell  you  when  to  have  it  done ;  I 
will  wait  till  you  are  ready,  my  darling.' 

"  Then  Eva  thought  long  of  it,  and  had 
many  an  earnest  conversation  upon  the  sub- 


EVA  PRAYING  FOE  STRENGTH   TO  SAY  THE  WORDS. 


POOR   RICH   LITTLE   EVA.  97 

ject  with  her  little  cousin  Ruth;  and  one 
day  she  said :  '  Ruth,  will  you  promise  me, 
true  for  true,  that  you  will  come  and  hold 
my  hand  when  they  operate  upon  my  eyes  ? 7 

"  *  I  promise  you,  true  for  true]  said 
Ruth. 

"  And  so  the  matter  was  settled. 

"  Time  passed  on ;  and  Eva  was  now 
eleven  years  old,  and  Ruth  nine. 

"  Then  Eva  made  a  great  resolution,  and 
going  to  her  father,  she  said :  '  Father,  I  am 
ready  NOW.' 

"  They  were  simple  words ;  but  poor  lit- 
tle Eva  had  prayed  to  God,  for  nights  and 
nights,  and  many  times  in  the  day,  to  give 
her  strength  to  say  them,  and  God  had  heard 
her  prayer ;  for  though  her  father  turned 
7 


98  BIG   NIGHTCAP    LETTERS. 

deadly  pale  at  the  words,  the  low  sweet 
voice  of  the  child  did  not  tremble. 

"  And  now  the  good  doctor  came,  all  his 
roughness  gone,  and  he  held  that  little  head, 
with  its  glossy  waves  of  hair,  to  keep  it 
steady,  but  it  trembled  far  less  than  he  did ; 
for  he  had  watched  Eva  from  her  infancy, 
and  dearly  loved  her,  aritl  he  was  intensely 
interested  in  the  result  of  the  experiment 
about  to  be  performed. 

"Near  Eva  stood  her  mother  and  her 
brave  and  faithful  cousin  Ruth,  holding  her 
hand,  as  she  had  promised  '  true  for  true] 
and  telling  her  to  take  courage,  for  all  would 
be  well. 

"  '  Patience,'  said  the  operator,  softly ;  *  a 
pang,  and  half  the  suffering  will  be  over.' 


POOR   RICH    LITTLE   EVA.  99 

"  The  little  hand  which  held  Kuth's  was 
clasped  more  tightly,  and  a  groan  smote  on 
the  listeners'  ears.  The  room  reeled — a  faint- 
ness  came  over  the  heroic  child;  but  she 
was  soon  herself  again. 

" l  Would  you  not  rather  wait  a  day  or 
two  for  the  other  eye  to  be  operated  upon  ? ' 
said  the  kind  physician.  '  A  week  hence,  or 
a  month,  will  answer.' 

" '  Oh !  no,'  answered  Eva,  with  quiet  self- 
possession,  *  let  it  be  done  to-day ;  let  it  be 
done  NOW.  I  do  not  think  I  could  bear 
the  suspense,  and  it  would  please  my  father 
to  know  that  it  was  over/ 

"Love  sustained  her.  Another  sigh — 
another  groan,  and  it  was  finished. 

"Then  came  the  bandages,  the  darkened 


100  BIG   NIGHTCAP    LETTERS. 

room,  the  stillness,  the  repose,  for  one  whose 
nerves  had  been  so  shaken  ;  but  often  those 
little  cousinly  hands  were  clasped  together 
in  a  pressure  which  spoke  more  love  than 
many  words. 

"  Her  father  hardly  ever  left  the  house, 
and  her  mother  wept  often,  for  she  loved  her 
child  in  her  blindness  as  much  as  a  mother 
could  love,  and  had  never  wished  her  to  go 
through  so  much  suffering — suffering  which 
might  be  fruitless;  and  she  waited  for  the 
result  with  trembling  anxiety. 

"  A  look  from  a  physician  has  often  more 
weight  than  many  words  spoken ;  and  Ruth, 
who  read  the  good  doctor's  face  with  the 
keenness  of  a  child's  perception,  was  the  first 
to  see  an  expression  of  hope  shining  upon 


POOR   RICH    LITTLE   EVA.  101 

it.  When  the  day  came  for  the  bandages 
to  be  removed,  Eva's  father  and  mother 
were  so  dreadfully  agitated,  that  they  had  to 
leave  the  room.  Trembling,  they  stood  out- 
side in  the  hall,  waiting  for  the  happy  or 
wretched  tidings. 

"But  Ruth— brave  little  Ruth— held 
Eva's  hand  as  before.  Those  little  clasped 
hands  gave  each  other  courage,  for  Ruth 
needed  it  as  much  as  Eva,  and  her  heart- 
beats could  almost  be  heard  in  the  silence. 
What  a  study  her  sweet  little  face  was,  as 
the  emotions  of  love,  pity,  fear,  and  hope, 
crossed  it,  as  shadowy  clouds  flit  across  the 
sky! 

"  Slowly,  cautiously,  the  bandages  were 
removed,  and  at  last  the  end  came,  and  the 


102  BIG   NIGHTCAP   LETTERS. 

little  girl  saw  upon  the  physician's  face  a 
broad,  cheerful,  happy  smile.  Ruth  was  a 
heroine,  and  had  great  self-control ;  but  now 
control  became  impossible.  She  thought  not 
of  consequences — she  only  thought  of  the 
unceasing  prayer  which  had  been  breathed 
by  that  household  for  mctny  weeks — she 
only  saw  that  that  prayer  had  been  granted. 

" '  SHE  WILL  SEE  !  she  will  see  ! ! '  she  al- 
most screamed.  '  Eva !  Eva !  love !  darling ! 
do  you  hear  ? ' 

"  The  physician  gave  her  a  stern  look  of 
rebuke,  but  it  was  too  late ;  Little  Eva  had 
fainted. 

" '  Ruth  is  right]  said  he  to  the  father 
and  mother,  who  had  rushed  in  at  this 
blessed  announcement,  '  but  she  has  been  too 


POOA   RICH    LITTLE   EVA.  103 

abrupt.  Her  cousin  and  herself  are  wonder- 
ful little  women  in  times  of  trial  and. danger ; 
but  neither  of  them  are  equal  to  a  sudden 

joy.' 

"  It  was  a  long  time  before  Eva  got  well, 
and  was  permitted  to  use  her  new  and 
precious  gift  o.  sight ;  but  then  the  amaze- 
ment and  delight  with  which  she  ran  from 
one  thing  to  another — the  joy  with  which 
she  gazed  upon  the  faces  of  her  parents  and 
Ruth,  no  one  of  us,  who  have  always  seen, 
can  ever  know  or  appreciate. 

"  And  old  Binah  said,  as  she  hugged  her 
darling  to  her  faithful  breast,  l  God  bress 
de  good  massa  dat  gib  de  sight  to  my  little 
missis.  It  don't  make  no  sort  of  difference 
to  she,  case  old  Binah  black.  Dear,  no !  she 


104  BIG   NIGHTCAP    LETTERS. 

iub  her  just  de  same  when.she  see  dot  I  don't 
you,  little  missis  \ ' 

"  '  Why,  of  course  I  do,'  answered  little 
Eva,  and  she  kissed  good  old  Binah,  and  ran 
off  with  Ruth  to  look  at  some  flowers.  Oh, 
that  precious  sight!  how  dear  it  was  to 
her!' 

"  And  now  she  is  no  longer  poor  rich  lit- 
tle Eva." 

The  children  had  listened  to  the  story 
of  Eva,  with  eager,  breathless  attention ;  and 
when  Ruth  screamed  out,  "  She  will  see  !  she 
will  see ! "  they  very  nearly  screamed,  too, 
so  rejoiced  were  they  that  the  blindness  had 
been  removed  ;  and  the  dear  little  girl  had 
not  suffered  so  much  for  nothing. 


POOR    RICH    LITTLE   EVA.  105 

"It  must  be  so  terrible  to  be  blind," 
said  Anna ;  "  don't  you  remember  when  we 
went  to  see  the  exhibition  of  the  blind  chil- 
dren at  the  Academy  of  Music,  the  tears 
were  rolling  down  mamma's  face  nearly  the 
whole  time,  and  we  all  felt  so  sorry,  that  we 
came  home  quite  unhappy  ?" 

"Dear  me,"  cried  Harry,  "I  do  wish 
there  was  no  such  affliction ;  why  must  there 
be,  mamma !  " 

"  God  knows  best,  dear  Harry,"  answer- 
ed the  little  mother.  "  If  He  did  not,  for 
His  own  wise  purpose,  permit  us  to  know 
trouble  and  sorrow  in  this  world,  we  would 
never  desire  that  blessed  rest  and  peace  here- 
after, which  he  promises  to  all  those  who 
put  their  trust  in  him." 


106  BIG   NIGHTCAP    LETTERS. 

"  Yes,  God  must  know  best,"  said  Clara, 
in  a  low  voice ;  "  for  dear  Charley  has  had 
more  suffering  and  sorrow  than  any  of  us, 
and  yet  he  loves  Him,  and  wants  to  go  to 
heaven." 

"  When  Charley  was  very  little,"  said  the 
mother,  "I  found  him  crying  bitterly  one 
day.  '  Why,  what  is  the  matter,  my  darling  ? ' 
I  said. 

" ' Oh  mamma ! '  he  sobbed,  'I  am  so 
afraid  there  won't  be  room  enough  in  heaven 
for  me!  Do  you  think  such  a  poor,  lame 
child  can  get  there  ? ' 

"  I  took  him  in  my  arms,  and  kissed  and 
comforted  him,  and  told  him  that  Jesus  look- 
ed at  the  heart,  not  at  the  weak,  crooked 
body ;  and  that  the  better  and  purer  his  life 


POOR   EICH    LITTLE  EVA.  107 

was,  the  greater  would  be  his  welcome  to 
His  house  Beautiful,  when  life .  had  ended 
here." 

All  the  children  looked  at  Charley,  with 
their  eyes  full  of  love ;  and  in  their  prayers 
that  night,  they  entreated  that  Jesus  would 
remember  their  dear  little  brother's  life-long 
suffering,  and  give  him  a  place  close  to  Him 
in  heaven. 


THE  FOUKTH  LETTER. 

ILL    TEMPER. 

For  George. 

"DEAR  GEOEGE: — You  know  you  are 
now  nearly  seventeen  years  old,  and  quite  a 
patriarch  in  the  Nightcap  family ;  and  I  am 
rejoiced  that  I  can  say  with  truth,  that  you 
have  been,  and  are,  a  most  excellent  elder 
brother,  unselfish,  sweet-tempered,  and  al- 
ways setting  a  good  example." 

"  Dear  me,"  interrupted  George,  laughing 


ILL   TEMPER.  109 

and  blushing  very  much,  "  I  do  not  deserve 
such  high  praise ; "  but  here'  the  expression 
of  his  face  changed,  his  lip  began  to  tremble, 
and  running  up  to  his  mother,  he  kissed  her, 
and  said — "Whatever  I  am  that  is  good, 
you,  dear  mother,  have  made  me." 

"  With  God's  help  and  blessing,  my  dear 
son,"  said  his  mother,  returning  the  kiss ;  and 
then  she  went  on  reading. 

"  When  you  were  a  little  fellow,  of  not 
quite  seven  years,  you  had  the  scarlet  fever, 
and  were  very  ill ;  and  perhaps  you  remem- 
ber how  cross  you  were  for  a  long  time  after." 

"  Oh,  yes,"  exclaimed  George  ;  "  mother 
used  to  say  somebody  else  must  have  jumped 
into  my  skin,  for,  certainly,  I  was  not  'the  same 
George." 


110  BIG   NIGHTCAP    LETTERS. 

"  I  have  written  a  story  about  this  change 
in  temper,  and  how  a  cure  was  effected.  You 
became  sweet-tempered  again,  as  soon  as  you 
got  quite  well ;  but  Arthur,  in  my  story,  re- 
quired a  lesson  and  some  punishment,  as  he 
became  cross  without  scarlet  fever,  rhyme, 
or  reason.  I  hope  you  will  let  me  know  if 
you  think  I  have  invented  a  good  plan  to 
cure  a  cross-patch.  You  know  I  am  a  great 
believer  in  our  always  trying  first  upon  our- 
selves,  what  we  propose  to  '  do  to  others]  as 
the  very  best  way  of  finding  out  if  we  would 
like  the  same  '  done  to  us?r' 

"  Why,  that's  the  '  golden  rule  ! ' "  cried 
little  Minnie ;  and  now  the  children  settled 
themselves,  and  eagerly  listened  to  the  fol- 
lowing story : 


ILL   TEMPER.  Ill 

ILL  TEMPER. 

"When  Arthur  was  about  seven  years 
old,  he  was  one  of  the  very  best  boys  to  be 
found  in  a  long  summer's  day.  In  the  morn- 
ing he  would  spring  out  of  bed  with  a  bright 
smile,  wash  and  dress  himself  quickly,  with 
the  help  of  Mary,  his  kind  nurse,  say  his 
prayers  slowly  and  reverently,  (ah !  that  was 
the  secret  of  his  goodness !)  and  then  all  day 
long  he  would  be  so  obliging  and  good-tem- 
pered, that  no  one  could  help  loving  him  that 
knew  him ;  and  so  they  didn't  try  to  help  it, 
for  everybody  loved  him  dearly. 

"  But,  alas !  I  have  heard  the  doctors  say, 
(and  of  course  they  must  know,)  that  once  in 
every  seven  years  the  whole  body  is  renewed, 


112  BIG   NIGHTCAP    LETTERS. 

flesh,  bones,  blood,  nerves,  muscles;  and  I 
grieve  to  have  to  relate,  that  in  Arthur's 
case  the  change  seemed  to  include  his  spirit- 
part  also ;  that  is,  his  good  temper  and  lov- 
ing ways  marched  out  of  him,  and  some  very 
bad  substitutes  marched  in,  as  I  shall  proceed 
to  relate. 

"  One  morning  Arthur  awoke  at  his  usual 
hour,  but  not  with  his  usual  smile.  His  face 
was  all  puckered  up  like  a  frozen  apple.  He 
floundered  about  the  bed,  and  bumped  his 
head  against  the  head-board,  and  was  just  as 
cross  as  forty  bears. 

"  Of  course  every  thing  went  wrong ;  he 
put  his  stockings  on  wrongside  out,  tied  his 
shoes  in  a  hard  knot,  pulled  on  his  panta- 
loons with  the  back  part  before,  and  drew 


ILL   TEMPER.  113 

his  arms  through  his  jacket  upside  down. 
Did  you  ever  hear  of  such  a  piece  of 
work  ? 

"  When  Mary  came  to  brush  his  hair  and 
wash  his  face,  he  screamed  out,  stamping  his 
foot  at  her — '  Do  stop !  Stop !  I  tell  you ! 
You  brush  me  as  hard  as  ever  you  can !  I 
wish  you  would  leave  me  alone,  you  ugly  old 
thing ! ' 

"  Oh,  dear,  dear,  what  a  sad  boy !  He 
puts  me  in  mind  of  that  other  naughty  boy 
who  scolded  his  nurse  in  a  piece  of  poetry. 
This  is  it: 

. "  '  Oh  why  must  my  face  be  washed  so  clean, 
And  scrubbed  and  scoured  for  Sunday  ? 
When  you  know  very  well,  as  you've  always  seen, 
'Twill  be  dirty  again  on  Monday. 

8 


114  BIG   NIGHTCAP    LETTERS. 

"  '  My  hair  is  stiff  with  the  hateful  soap, 

That  behind  my  ears  is  dripping ; 

My  smarting  eyes,  I'm  afraid  to  ope, 

And  my  lips  the  suds  are  sipping. 

"  '  They're  down  my  throat,  and  they're  up  my  nose, 

And  to  choke  me  you  seem  to  be  trying, 
That  I'll  shut  my  mouth,  you  needn't  suppose, 
For  how  can  I  keep  from  crying  ? 

" '  And  you  rub  as  hard  as  ever  you  can, 

And  your  hands  are  hard,  to  my  sorrow ; 
No  woman  shall  wash  me,  when  I'm  a  man, 
And  I  wish  I  was  one  to-morrow.' 

"  But  at  last  Arthur  went  sulking  down 
to  breakfast,  forgetting  to  say  Ms  prayers  ; 
and  taking  his  seat  at  the  table,  whined  out, 
the  very  first  thing — '  Just  look  at  this  piece 
of  toast ;  it  is  all  burnt,  and  as  hard  as  a 


ILL   TEMPER.  115 

stone.  I  won't  have  it!'  Then  he  tasted 
his  coffee,  and  exclaimed — *  Pooh !  what  cof- 
fee !  perfect  slops ! ' 

"  His  mother  was  grieved  to  see  him  act- 
ing so  naughtily,  and  said,  gently — 4I  am 
sony,  Arthur,  you  are  not  pleased ;  will  you 
have  an  egg  ? 7 

"  Arthur  cracked  an  egg  with  his  tea- 
spoon, looked  at  it,  threw  it  down,  and  turn- 
ing up  his  nose  with  disdain,  said — '  Eggs ! 
Brickbats  you  mean  !  they  have  been  boiling 
all  night.' 

"  This  exhibition  of  ill  temper  distressed 
his  mother  exceedingly,  but  she  did  not  say 
any  thing  to  him  then ;  being  a  woman  of 
excellent  sense,  she  formed  a  plan  in  her  mind 
which  she  hoped  would  effect  a  cure. 


116  BIG   NIGHTCAP    LETTERS. 

"  Arthur  was  an  only  child.  His  parents 
were  rich,  and  they  preferred  that  he  should 
be  educated  at  home ;  they  feared  his  learn- 
ing evil  as  well  as  good  at  a  large  school. 
Hitherto  this  plan  had  been  very  successful, 
for  Arthur  was  as  studious  and  obedient  as 
his  tutors  could  possibly  wish ;  and  this  sud- 
den and  sad  change  made  all  around  him 
unhappy.  I  will  give  you  a  history  of  one 
of  these  miserable  days. 

"  On  this  morning,  his  tutor  arrived,  as 
usual,  at  nine  o'clock;  and  commenced  by 
giving  his  pupil  a  lesson  in  penmanship. 
There  was  an  ominous  scowl  on  Arthur's 
face.  He  twitched  his  copy-book  before  him, 
pretended  he  could  not  find  a  good  pen, 
scratched  and  blotted  the  paper  from  top  to 


ILL    TEMPER.  117 

bottom,  and  so,  when  the  lesson  was  finished, 
the  page  was  a  sight  to  behold. 

"  '  You  have  not  tried  to  write  well,'  said 
his  master,  mildly. 

"  '  My  pen  was  abominable,  and  the  paper 
was  greasy,'  said  Arthur,  sulkily. 

"  '  A  bad  workman  always  pretends  that 
his  tools  are  to  blame/  said  the  master. 

"  '  Oh,  dear  me !  you  are  never  satisfied ! 
If  I  write  too  lightly,  you  say  it  looks  as  if  a 
spider  had  scampsred  over  the  paper  with 
inky  legs ;  if  I  bear  on  harder,  you  ask  me 
how  much  horse  power  I  have  put  on  to 
make  such  heavy  strokes.  I  don't  know 
what  to  do !  I  don't !  You  are  always  grum- 
bling.' 

"  *  Oh,  no !  not  always,  for  here  are  a  great 


118  BIG   NIGHTCAP   LETTERS. 

many  pages  on  which  I  have  written,  *  Very 
well ;  very  well,  indeed.' 

" '  That  was  only  by  chance,'  said  Arthur. 

"  '  But  if  these  chances  do  not  always  oc- 
cur, whose  fault  is  it  ? ' 

"  '  Oh,  mine !  I  suppose  you  mean  to  say,' 
answered  Arthur,  pettishly. 

"  '  Well,  my  dear  boy,  only  look  at  your 
writing  to-day.  It  resembles  a  company  of 
soldiers,  each  of  whom  carries  his  musket  to 
suit  himself,  this  one  to  the  right,  that  to  the 
left,  a  third  horizontally,  a  fourth  perpen- 
dicularly, and  all  the  rest  of  the  letters  with 
broken  backs  and  crooked  legs.  Just  look 
at  it ! ' 

"  '  Oh,  dear  !  you  are  always  mocking  me,' 
whined  Arthur.  '  One  would  think  I  did  it 
all  on  purpose.  Oh,  dear  me ! ' 


ILL   TEMPER.  119 

"  At  last  this  lesson  came  to  an  end ;  but 
the  others  were  no  better,  and  the  poor  mas- 
ter went  away  with  his  temper  sorely  tried, 
sadly  remembering  the  happy  and  good  little 
Arthur  of  the  year  before. 

"  In  the  afternoon,  his  mother  said,  in  a 
pleasant  tone,  '  Come,  dear  Arthur,  come 
and  take  a  walk  with  me ;  it  is  such  a  lovely 
day ;  the  robins  are  singing  in  the  trees ;  and 
look,  how  fast  the  delicate  white  clouds  are 
sailing  through  the  air !  Come,  dear.' 

" '  It  isn't  pleasant !  and  I  can't  bear 
robins,'  said  Arthur. 

"  His  mother  sighed  and  went  alone. 

"Left  at  home,  Arthur  tried  to  amuse 
himself.  He  got  out  his  puzzle,  or  dissected 
map  of  the  United  States ;  but  as  ill-temper- 


120  BIG   NIGHTCAP    LETTERS. 

ed  people  are  never  patient  or  gentle,  in  a 
very  little  while  lie  had  cracked  South  Caro- 
lina nearly  in  two,  snapped  off  the  top  of 
Maryland,  broken  New  York  into  three 
pieces,  and  made  mince-meat  of  the  Union 
generally,  which  was  a  very  shocking  thing 
to  do,  even  on  a  dissected  map ;  and  then, 
the  cross  boy  ended  by  throwing  all  the 
States  into  the  black  coal-scuttle. 

"  After  this  he  tried  to  read  ;  but  nothing 
seemed  to  amuse  him.  From  '  Robinson 
Crusoe '  he  went  to  the  '  Eollo  Books,'  and 
from  those  to  '  Nightcaps,'  and  declared  they 
were  all  stupid  alike, (  a  perfect  pack  of  non- 
sense ! ' 

"  As  a  last  resource,  he  called  Jumbo,  his 
big  cat,  who  was  so  fond  of  Arthur,  that  he 


ILL    TEMPER.  121 

would  let  him  do  just  what  lie  pleased  with 
him,  that  is,  as  long  as  his  little  master  was 
kind ;  but  to-day  he  pinched  his  ears,  and 
pulled  his  tail,  and  twitched  his  whiskers  at 
such  a  rate,  that  poor  Jumbo  puckered  up 
his  face  like  a  pudding-bag,  and  squalled  like 
a  first-class  opera  singer. 

"  '  The  bad  old  thing ! '  exclaimed  Arthur. 
'I  declare,  he  ought  to  be  drowned!  I'll 
never  play  with  him  again.  Scat !  scat !  get 
out ! '  and  off  scampered  poor  Jumbo,  and  hid 
himself  behind  the  kitchen  door. 

"All  this  time  you  are  wondering  his 
mother  did  not  punish  him.  Wait  a  little. 
Just  read  to  the  end,  and  then  tell  me  what 
you  think  of  her  mode  of  punishment.  I  shall 
wish  very  much  to  know  if  you  approve  of  it. 


122  BIG   NIGHTCAP    LETTERS. 

"  One  evening,  after  Arthur  had  gone  to 
bed,  his  father  and  mother  had  a  long  con- 
sultation with  each  other  about  the  best  way 
of  curing  Arthur's  ill  temper;  and  they 
agreed  upon  a  plan  his  mother  had  thought 
of  during  the  day. 

"  The  next  morning  came,  when  the  trial 
was  to  be  made.  Every  one  received  his  or 
her  instructions  from  Arthur's  mother,  and 
were  quite  ready  to  begin  the  new  mode  of 
punishment. 

"  But,  for  a  wonder,  on  this  particular 
morning  Arthur  awoke  feeling  very  pleasant 
and  amiable.  Never  mind,  he  was  to  receive 
his  lesson  all  the  same. 

"  While  Mary  was  helping  him  to  dress, 
she  seemed  very  snappish  and  impatient. 


ILL    TEMPER.  123 

"  l  Do,  for  goodness  sake,  keep  still,  Mas- 
ter Arthur ! '  slie  said ;  *  you  are  always  fidg- 
eting and  fussing.' 

" 1 1? '  said  Arthur,  laughing.  l  Why,  I've 
been  as  still  as  a  mouse ! ' 

"  Mary  was  silent  for  a  moment,  but  pre- 
sently she  exclaimed — '  How  carelessly  you 
have  washed  your  hands,  your  shirt  is  all 
wet.  I  have  shown  you  how  to  wash  without 
splashing  a  hundred  times.  You  worry  my 
life  out ! ' 

"'I  tried  to  do  as  you  told  me,'  said 
Arthur,  with  a  little  sigh. 

"  '  Oh,  fiddlesticks !  don't  tell  mo  !  You 
are  a  terrible  boy  ! '  and  Mary  bounced  out 
of  th<j  room,  banging  the  door  behind  her. 

"  Arthur  went  down  to   breakfast,  and 


124  BIG   NIGHTCAP    LETTERS. 

ran  up  to  his  mother  to  tell  her  about  Mary. 
( I  think  she  was  "  terrible," '  he  said.  '  What 
could  be  the  matter  with  her,  mamma  ? ' 

" '  Perhaps  she  was  indulging  in  ILL  TEM- 
PER,' answered  his  mother,  significantly. 

"  When  they  sat  down  to  breakfast  there 
was  no  toast. 

" '  I  should  like  a  piece  of  toast,'  said 
Arthur. 

"  His  mother  rang  a  little  bell,  and  the 
cook  came  in.  She  looked  first  at  the  mis- 
tress, with  a  peculiar  smile,  and  then  she 
looked  at  Arthur. 

"  '  Margaret,'  said  he,  '  there  is  no  toast.' 

"  'I  know  it,  Master  Arthur ;  it  was  too 
brown ;  and  you  are  so  hard  to  suit,  that  I 
did  not  dare  to  serve  it.' 


ILL   TEMPER.  125 

"  '  I  hard  to  suit  ? '  cried  Arthur,  who 
seemed  to  have  forgotten  what  a  naughty 
boy  he  had  been.  '  ./hard  to  suit  ?  Not  at 
all.  If  the  toast  is  a  little  too  brown,  I  don't 
mind  it.  Give  it  to  me,  Margaret/ 

"  '  I  threw  it  away,'  said  the  cook. 

" '  Oh,  well,  I'm  in  no  hurry ;  I  will  wait 
while  you  make  me  another  piece.' 

"  '  My  fire  has  gone  out,'  said  the  cook. 

"  '  Well,  you  can  re-light  it,  can't  you  ? ' 

" '  Do  you  think  I  have  nothing  to  do 
but  to  wait  upon  you  ? '  cried  the  cook.  *  You 
know  nothing  ever  suits  you ;  and  you  al- 
ways speak  rudely  to  me ; '  and  she  flounced 
out  of  the  room. 

w '  How  can  she  say  so,  mamma  ? '  cried 
Arthur.  *  I  speak  rudely  to  her  ?  Why,  I 


126  BIG   NIGHTCAP   LETTERS. 

was  as  polite  as  ever  I  could  be.  It  is  too 
bad!' 

"  '  Servants  find  it  very  hard  to  attend 
upon  you,  Arthur.  They  are  accustomed  to 
polite  treatment  from  the  rest  of  us.1 

"  '  "Well — but  mamma — to  accuse  me  to- 
day, when  it  was  she  who  ' — 

" '  "Was  indulging  in  ILL-TEMPEK,'  inter- 
rupted his  mother. 

"  Arthur  understood,  and  was  silent. 

"  The  hour  for  his  grammar  lesson  had 
now  arrived.  The  tutor  bowed  to  Arthur's 
mother,  smiled,  and  commenced : 

"  c  Do  you  know  your  lessons,  my  young 
friend  ? ' 

"  '  I  have  studied  them,  sir.' 

"  '  Do  you  know  them  ?    It  is  of  little 


ILL   TEMPER.  127 

consequence  that  you  have  studied  them,  if 
you  do  not  know  them.' 

"  '  I  believe  I  do,  sir.' 

"  c  Well,  let  us  see — begin.' 

"  *  In  the  tenses]  began  Arthur  a  little 
embarrassed,  'we  should  distinguish  the 
moods  and  the  verbs.'  , 

" l  Nonsense !  you  should  have  said,  "  In 
the  verbs  we  should  distinguish  the  moods 
and  the  tenses." ' 

" '  Yes,  sir,  that  is  what  I  meant  to  say  ; 
I  knew  that,  but  my  tongue  slipped.1 

" '  Your  tongue  slips  very  often.  Con- 
tinue'— 

"  Arthur,  still  more  embarrased,  said — • 
'  We  should  also  distinguish  the  moods  and 
the  persons.' 


128  BIG  NIGHTCAP    LETTERS. 

"  *  You  must  be  demented !  What  Lave 
the  moods  to  do  in  that  sentence  ?  Perhaps 
you  are  expecting  a  visit  from  the  man  in 
the  moon,  and  that  makes  you  talk  such 
nonsense.  The  grammar  says — "  We  should 
distinguish  the  numbers  and  the  persons." 
Your  tongue  does  nothing  but  slip ;  you 
do  not  know  your  lesson.7 

"  '  Excuse  me,  sir ;  I  do  know  it.' 

"  *  You  are  not  respectful,  Master  Arthur,' 
said  the  teacher  in  a  cold,  severe  tone. 

" '  But,  sir'— 

"  *  When  a  boy  knows  his  lesson  he  does 
not  make  such  abominable  blunders  in  re- 
citing.' 

"  '  But,  sir,  you  troubled  me ;  you  put 
me  out.' 


ILL   TEMPER.  129 

"  '  I  trouble  you  ?  A  very  singular  ex- 
cuse, and  a  very  poor  one.  Come,  let  me 
look  at  your  composition.' 

"  But  here  matters  became  worse  and 
worse.  The  master  '  pshawed,'  and  frowned, 
and  grumbled  to  himself.  '  No  application ! 
no  thought !  bad  spelling !  bad  grammar !  a 
perfect  mass  of  faults ! ' 

"  Arthur  grew  red  and  pale  by  turns,  as 
his  teacher  wrote  right  across  the  page  in 
large  letters :  '  A  composition  so  badly  done, 
that  it  is  impossible  to  correct  it.7 

"  Then  he  rose  coldly,  looking  very  grim, 
took  his  hat,  and  addressing  Arthur's  mother, 
said — 'Madam,  I  cannot  consent  to  teach 
your  son  any  longer ;  I  have  so  little  suc- 
cess, that  I  feel  I  have  no  right  to  the  very 
9 


130  BIG   NIGHTCAP    LETTERS. 

liberal  salary  you  have  accorded  me.  An- 
other, perhaps,  will  do  better.' 

" '  Oh,  sir !  no !  pray,  don't  go ! '  exclaim- 
ed Arthur ;  '  I  will  try  to  do  better !  indeed, 
I  will !  upon  my  word  and  honor  I  will.  I 
love  you,  sir  ! ' 

"  A  pleasant  light  suddenly  came  into 
the  teacher's  eyes,  and  a  soft  smile  passed 
like  lightning  over  his  lips. 

" '  Do,  please,  give  me  your  hand,  sir,' 
said  Arthur,  '  and  promise  me  that  you  will 
continue  to  teach  me.' 

"His  broad,  black  eyebrows  immedi- 
ately contracted  into  a  great  frown ;  and  he 
said  gruffly — '  Very  well,  I  will  try  you  once 
more,'  and  left  the  room. 

"  For  a  few  moments  there  was  silence ; 


ILL    TEMPER.  131 

then  a  distressed  expression  came  over  Ar- 
thur's face,  as  lie  said — '  Mamma,  my  teacher 
was  very —  (he  was  at  a  loss  for  a  word) 
very  singular  with  me  to-day — don't  you 
think  so,  mamma  ? ' 

" '  What  do  you  mean  by  singular  ? 

"  '  Why,  not  as  he  usually  is — not  at 
all.' 

"  '  His  reproofs  seemed  perfectly  just  to 
me ;  you  were  not  perfect  in  your  lessons.' 

"  *  Well,  mamma,  I  do  not  deny  that ;  but 
at  all  other  times  he  has  been  so  kind  and  pa- 
tient, and  never  treated  me  with  such  unex- 
pected severity.' 

"  '  Ah ! '  said  his  mother,  '  I  am  afraid, 
then,  that  this  morning  he  was  indulging  in 

ILL  TEMPER.' 


132  BIG   NIGHTCAP    LETTERS. 

"  Arthur  hung  his  head,  and  was  silent : 
his  conscience  was  busy  whispering  to  him, 
and  the  rest  of  the  morning  passed  painfully ; 
but  after  luncheon,  he  prepared  for  a  walk 
with  joy,  for  the  day  was  lovely,  and  the  air 
exhilarating. 

"  But  all  at  once  the  sky  became  over- 
oast,  and  very  soon  after  the  rain  fell  in  tor- 
rents. 

"  '  Oh,  dear  me,  how  tiresome  ! '  cried 
Arthur,  'just  when  I  am  going  to  take  a 
walk ;  it  is  perfectly  hateful.' 

" '  God  sends  the  rain,'  said  his  mother, 
gently. 

"Arthur  hung  his  head  again  without 
answering.  What  could  he  say,  indeed? 
But  with  his  new  resolution  strong  in  his 


ILL    TEMPER.  133 

mind,  lie  determined  to  bear  this  disappoint- 
ment with  patience ;  and  he  called  Jumbo  to 
play  with  him. 

"But  the  cat,  usually  so  quick  to  come 
purring  to  his  knee,  remained  just  where  he 
was,,  as  if  he  had  been  suddenly  struck  deaf, 
and  dumb,  and  blind.  Arthur  went  to  him, 
and  tried  to  take  him  in  his  arms ;  but  he 
hissed  at  his  playmate,  and  scampered  away 
with  his  back  and  tail  high  in  the  air,  and 
hid  under  the  sofa. 

"  '  Ah  me ! '  sighed  Arthur,  '  I  suppose 
Jumbo  is  like  the  rest ;  he  is  indulging  in 

ILL  TEMPEE,  tOO.' 

"  *  Not  quite  that,'  observed  his  mother ; 
'  but  animals  have  memories? 

" '  I  think  you  had  better  say  that  they 
are  spiteful,  mamma.' 


134  BIG   NIGHTCAT?    LETTERS. 

" '  Perhaps  they  are,  my  son ;  but  they 
have  no  reason,  while  we  are  capable  of  con- 
trolling our  impatience,  and  governing  our 
passions,  if  we  ask  God  to  help  us.' 

"  Upon  this  Arthur  fairly  broke  down ; 
and,  bursting  into  tears,  sobbed  out — '  Oh, 
dear  mamma,  I  understand  the  lesson  I  have 
received  from  every  one  to-day.  Do  be- 
lieve that  I  will  try  with  all  my  strength  to 
conquer  my  ill  temper :  I  promise  you.  Do, 
please  mamma,  forgive  me.' 

"  His  mother  wound  her  loving  arms 
around  her  son,  and  tenderly  kissed  him,  and 
said — '  I  forgive  you,  my  dear  child,  with  all 
my  heart,  and  we  will  both  pray  to  our  Heav- 
enly Father  to  send  down  His  Holy  Spirit  to 
guide  and  direct  your  efforts  to  do  right. 


ILL   TEMPER.  135 

You  have  borne  your  disappointments  to- 
day with  patience  and  resignation ;  and  I 
feel  that  you  will  soon  be  the  good,  sweet- 
tempered  boy,  you  were  a  year  ago.' 

"  Arthur  kept  his  promise,  and  whenever 
he  was  tempted  to  give  a  cross  answer,  or 
get  in  a  passion,  he  was  sure  to  remember 
in  time  the  celebrated  day  when  everybody, 
by  his  mother's  instructions,  attempted  his 
cure,  by  showing  him,  in  their  own  persons, 
the  unlovely  consequences  of  indulging  in 

ILL  TEMPER." 

"What  a  nice  story!"  exclaimed  the 
children,  "  and  what  a  good  way  of  curing 
Arthur — better  than  a  hundred  whippings. 


136  BIG   NIGHTCAP    LETTERS. 

When  we  do  any  thing  bad,  mamma,  you 
must  punish  us  Aunt  Fanny's  way.  Couldn't 
you  punish  us  for  something  now  ? " 

The  little  mother  laughed  at  this  com- 
ical request,  and  said — "  I  can't  think  of  any 
thing  just  now  to  punish  you  for;  and  I 
hope  you  don't  want  to  do  any  thing 
naughty  on  purpose." 

"  O  dear,  no  ! "  cried  the  children,  but 
George,  with  a  good-humored  twinkle  in  his 
eye,  added — "  At  any  rate,  mamma,  the  next 
time  Harry  puts  salt  into  the  sugar-bowl, 
and  makes  me  spoil  my  coffee,  I  intend  to 
put  powdered  sugar  into  the  salt-cellar  for 
him  to  sprinkle  over  his  stewed  oysters." 

"  Oh,  do ! w  cried  all  the  children  ;  "  only 
think  of  oysters  and  sugar  !  perfectly  dread- 
ful!" 


ILL    TEMPER.  137 

"'Well,'  said  Harry,  laughing,  'I  shall 
have  to  buy  a  snuff-box,  then,  and  keep  it  in 
my  pocket  full  of  salt.' 

"  '  But  don't  forget  yourself,'  said  Anna, 
'  and  politely  offer  a  pinch  of  it  to  the  first 
old  lady  you  meet ;  she  might  think  you 
meant  to  play  a  trick  upon  her,  you  know.' 

"  'What  an  idea!'  cried  Harry;  'I 
wouldn't  do  such  a  thing ;  I  should  think  it 
would  make  her  sneeze  worse  than  any  snuff. 
Wouldn't  it  ?' 

" '  The  best  way  to  find  that  out,'  said 
George,  with  a  roguish  smile,  '  would  be  to 
take  a  good  pinch  yourself.' 

"  While  this  conversation  had  been  going 
on,  little  Johnny  had  disappeared  in  the 
pantiy ;  and  now,  at  this  very  moment,  he 


138  BIG   NIGHTCAP    LETTERS. 

came  out,  screaming :  '  Oh !  my  nose  hurts ! 
my  nose  hurts ! '  and  ran  to  his  mother. 

"  It  seems  that,  anxious  to  find  out  what 
kind  or  snuff  salt  would  make,  he  had  pri- 
vately walked  into  the  pantry,  and  had 
snuffed  and  poked  quite  a  quantity  into  his 
poor  little  nose,  and  now  it  smarted  as  if 
twenty  hornets  had  stung  him  at  once  ;  and 
he  jumped  up  and  down  with  the  pain. 

"They  had  a  great  time  soaking  his 
nose  in  warm  water,  and  felt  very  sorry  for 
him,  though  they  could  not,  for  their  lives, 
help  laughing  when  George  said  that  Johnny 
had  salted  and  pickled  his  nose  so  well,  that 
it  would  keep  in  the  hottest  weather;  at 
any  rate,  it  would  last  him  as  long  as  he 
lived;  which  comforted  Johnny  very  much, 


ILL    TEMPER.  139 

for  he  thought  that  it  might  have  to  be  cut 
off  to  get  the  salt  out. 

"After  this  they  bid  everybody  good 
night,  and  went  to  bed,  and  Johnny  said  he 
felt  '  pretty  compertuffle?  His  mother  had 
told  him  that  '  good  little  Henry,'  of  whom 
you  have  read,  always  said  '  compertuffle'  for 
1  comfortable,'  and  Johnny  thought  it  was 
just  the  right  word  to  express  his  feelings." 


THE   FIFTH   LETTEE. 

THE  ROSE  CROWN. 

For  Clara. 

DEAR,  TENDER-HEARTED  LITTLE  CLARA  : — 
In  the  olden  time,  there  was  a  beautiful 
superstition  in  Germany,  that  on  Christmas 
eve  our  Saviour,  just  as  he  was  when  a  little 
child  here  below,  comes  at  midnight  in  at 
the  door,  and  fills  all  those  children's  shoes 
with  .gifts,  who  have  followed  His  example 
of  goodness  and  obedience.  You  know  that 

NOTE. — This  story  was  suggested  by  reading  about  Christ- 
mas in  Germany,  in  Bayard  Taylor's  "  Views  Afoot." 


THE    ROSE    CROWN.  141 

you  hang  up  your  stockings,  and  Santa  Clans 
comes  down  the  chimney;  but  the  little 
German  children  believe  that  they  are  far 
more  blessed.  It  is  a  beautiful  idea,  for  it 
brings  Him,  who  for  our  sakes  became  a  little 
child  on  earth,  more  closely  and  lovingly  to 
the  children's  hearts.  They  grow  up  sure  of 
His  love  and  sympathy,  from  infancy  to  old 
age. 

I  have  asked  Sarah  ("the  doctor")  to 
write  me  another  story  after  the  German 
fashion,  on  purpose  for  you.  She  has  given 
me  this  "  Eose  Crown ; "  and  the  story  turns 
upon  the  sweet  and  solemn  belief  of  the  Ger- 
man children. 

You  will  perceive  that  the  little  Gott- 
fried in  the  story  thought  of  this  with  such 


142  BIG   NIGHTCAP    LETTERS. 

intensity,  and  with  such  perfect  faith  in  its 
truth,  as  to  cause  him  to  walk  in  his  sleep, 
like  a  somnambulist.  No  doubt  your  dear 
mother  can  tell  you  many  strange  and  extra- 
ordinary stories  of  somnambulists,  who  do 
the  most  wonderful  and  startling  things 
while  in  this  kind  of  trance  state,  of  which 
they  are  utterly  unconscious  when  they 
awake. 

I  hope  this  story  will  please  my  dear 
little  Clara ;  it  is  called 

THE  ROSE  CROWN. 

"  It  was  Christmas  eve,  and  a  cold  win- 
ter's day.  The  flakes  of  snow  fell  softly  and 
thickly,  and  had  already  covered  the  earth 
with  a  white  cloak. 


THE   ROSE   CROWN.  143 

"At  one  of  the  windows  of  the  large 
house  that  stands  on  the  top  of  the  hill, 
where  the  purple  violets  first  peep  out  in  the 
spring-time,  stood  the  little  Gottfried  and  his 
sister  Marie. 

" '  Only  look,  dear  Marie,'  said  Gottfried, 
1  how  fast  the  snow  falls !  What  large  flakes ! 
They  look  like  little  milk-white  doves.' 

"  *  It  is  the  Mother  Holle  shaking  her 
feather-beds,'  cried  Marie,  laughing;  and 
looking  up  towards  the  sky,  and  beckoning 
with  her  hand,  she  sang — 

"  '  Mother  Holle, 

Good  wife  Holle, 
Fill  the  meadows  fair  and  full : 

Stay  not,  pause  not, 

Shake  away, 
Make  the  snow  fall  fast  to-day.' 


144  BIG    NIGHTCAP    LETTERS. 

"  '  Oil !  I  can  sing  a  prettier  song  than 
thine,'  said  Gottfried.  'Listen,  now.  The 
good  wife  Katarine  taught  it  to  me ;  and  he 
sang — 

"  '  See  the  snow-flakes, 
Merry  snow-flakes ! 
How  they  fall  from  yonder  sky, 
Coming  lightly,  coming  sprightly, 
Dancing  downwards,  from  on  high. 
Faint  or  tire,  will  they  never, 
Wheeling  round  and  round  forever. 

Surely  nothing  do  I  know, 

Half  so  merry  as  the  snow ; 
Half  so  merry,  merry,  merry, 

As  the  dancing,  glancing  snoWt 

"  '  See  the  snow-flakes, 
Solemn  snow-flakes ! 
How  they  whiten,  melt  and  die. 


THE    ROSE    CROWN.  145 

In  what  cold  and  shroud-like  masses 
O'er  the  buried  earth  they  lie. 
Lie  as  though  the  frozen  plain 
Ne'er  would  bloom  with  flowers  again. 

Surely  nothing  do  I  know, 

Half  so  solemn  as  the  snow, 
Half  so  solemn,  solemn,  solemn, 
As  the  falling,  melting  snow.' 

"  '  Ah !  thy  song  is  sad,  brother,'  said 
little  Marie :  *  it  makes  me  sigh.7 

"  As  she  spoke,  a  little  boy,  poorly  clad, 
was  seen  coming  up  the  avenue ;  and  Gott- 
fried exclaimed — '  Here  comes  Heinrich ! ' 
and  running  out  of  the  room,  he  presently 
returned,  leading  by  the  hand  Heinrich,  the 
little  faggot-maker,  whose  mother,  a  poor 
but  pious  widow,  lived  in  a  hut  just  out  of 

the  village. 

10 


146  BIG  NIGHTCAP   LETTERS. 

! 

" '  "Why,  Heinrich,  where  Last  thou  been 
this  cold  day  ? '  asked  Marie. 

"  *  Taking  my  faggots  to  Herr  Kauffer- 
man's,'  said  the  poor  boy.  *  But  oh,  Gott- 
fried, they  have  there  the  most  beautiful 
Christmas  Tree ! '  and  then  Heinrich  paused 
and  sighed. 

" '  And  to-night  the  dear  Christ-kind- 
cherr,  or  Holy  Child,  will  bring  them  pres- 
ents,' said  Gottfried.  'I  hope  he  will  fill 
thy  shoes  full.'* 

" '  Alas  !  the  Christ-child  never  comes  to 
me,'  said  Heinrich. 

"  l  What !  hast  thou  never  heard  how  he 
comes  at  midnight,  bearing  a  lighted  taper 

*  In  Germany,  they  fill  the  children's  shoes  instead  of 
their  stockings. 


THE  BAD  BOY  TAUNTING  HEINRICH. 


THE    ROSE    CROWN.  147 

and  a  crown  of  white  roses,  and  gives  pres- 
ents to  all  the  good  children  ? ' 

"  '  My  mother  has  told  me  of  this,'  said 
Heinrich,  '  and  I  have  waited  and  watched, 
but  he  never  comes !  He  never  will  come. 
It  was  only  yesterday  that  I  met  Hans,  the 
butcher's  son,  and  he  mocked  me,  and  snap- 
ped his  fingers  in  my  face,  and  said — "  Thou 
art  so  poor,  that  thy  shoes  will  never  have 
any  thing  in  them ; "  and  I  was  so  angry,  and 
wanted  to  strike  him,  but  my  mother  said  I 
must  never  fight  or  quarrel  with  any  one, 
and  I  went  away  from  him ;  but  it  is  hard 
to  be  poor,'  and  here  he  began  to  cry. 

"  *  Ah !  yes,  it  is  sad,  dear  Heinrich ;  but 
do  not  weep ;  here,  wipe  thine  eyes  with  my 
new  pocket-handkerchief.  Come,  now,  be 


148  BIG   NIGHTCAP    LETTERS. 

happy ;  and  I  will  pray  to  the  Christ-child, 
and  beg  him  to  come  this  very  night  to 
thee.' 

"  At  this  the  little  faggot-maker's  face 
brightened,  and  soon  after  he  went  away. 

"  In  the  evening,  the  children  had  their 
supper,  and  soon  after  they  stood  by  the 
knee  of  their  kind  mother,  and  sang  this 
hymn: 

"  Jesus,  our  Shepherd  !  we  ask  for  thy  blessing, 
Through  the  long  hours  of  this  dreary  night; 
Let  us  not  know  (thy  kind  favor  possessing) 
Danger  or  sorrow,  till  morning  is  bright. 

"  Jesus,  our  Saviour  !  oh  !  grant  thy  protection, 
To  thy  dear  arms  we  have  trustingly  come ; 
Oh,  Lamb  of  God  !  make  secure  our  election, 
Guard  us,  and  keep  us,  and  call  us  thine  own. 


THE   ROSE    CROWN.  149 

"  Jesus,  our  Crown  !  Ob,  thou  Heavenly  Glory! 

Humbly  we  kneel,  and  entreat  tbee  to  love, 
Bless  and  receive  us,  as  in  Bible  story, 
Till  we  shall  come  to  tby  mansion  above." 

"  When  they  had  finished  the  hymn,  they 
reverently  repeated  their  prayers ;  and  then, 
each  bidding  the  other  good  night  and  sweet 
dreams,  went  to  their  white-curtained  beds. 

"  Later  at  night,  their  mother  came  to 
see  that  they  were  warm.  Gottfried  was 
still  awake ;  he  was  troubled  about  little 
Heinrich ;  and  he  told  his  mother  how  the 
poor  boy  had  grieved  because  the  Christ- 
child  never  came  to  him.  i  I  have  prayed 
to  Him,  dear  mother ;  do  you  think  He  will 
hear  me  ? '  said  the  tender-hearted  boy. 


150  BIG   NIGHTCAP   LETTERS. 

"  '  Yes,  dear  child,'  said  the  mother, '  dost 
thou  not  remember  what  the  hymn  says  ? 

"  And  when,  dear  Jesus,  I  kneel  down, 

Morning  and  night  to  prayer, 
Something  there  is  within  my  heart, 
Which  tells  me  THOU  ART  THERE." 

" '  He  works  sometimes  through  human 
hands ;  and  now  look  thou,  my  little  Gott- 
fried,' continued  his  mother,  kissing  him,  '  I 
will  make  this  night  a  wreath  of  white  roses 
for  thee,  and  fasten  a  purse  about  the  stems, 
with  some  golden  guilders  within,  and  thou 
shalt  take  it  to  Heinrich  to-morrow  morn- 
ing.' 

"  '  Ah,  thou  dearest  mother ! '  cried  Gott- 
fried, joyfully,  and  the  loving  kisses  were 


THE    ROSE    CROWN.  151 

pressed  upon  her  cheek.  'The  dear  Jesus 
has  heard  me  already ; '  and  kneeling  in  the 
bed,  he  poured  out  his  grateful  thanks ;  and 
then  lying  down,  he  soon  fell  asleep,  with  a 
bright  flush  of  happiness  upon  his  face. 

"The  snow  had  ceased  to  fall,  and  it  was 
late,  but  still  in  the  widow's  cottage  the  fit- 
ful fire-light  (for  candles  there  were  none) 
showed  her  bending  over  some  work.  By 
her  side  on  the  hearth  crouched  the  little 
Heinrich. 

"  '  Go  to  bed,  dear  child,'  said  his  mother ; 
4  it  is  too  late  for  thee.' 

" '  Ah,  dear  mother !  let  me  wait  for 
thee,'  answered  the  boy ;  i  it  is  so  cold  and 
dark  in  our  little  room  above.'  He  was  silent 


152  BIG   NIGHTCAP   LETTERS. 

for  a  moment,  gazing  into  the  fire  in  a  wish- 
ful manner ;  then  he  said — '  Mother,  dost 
thou  think  the  Christ-child  will  indeed  hear 
Gottfried's  prayer,  and  come  to  me  and 
thee  ? ' 

"  '  I  hope  he  will,  my  Heinrich/  said  the 
sad  mother,  smiling  faintly. 

" '  Ah,  but  mother,  dost  thou  not  know  it  ? ' 

"The  fire  burned  low,  and  the  poor 
woman  could  no  longer  see.  She  put  up  the 
coarse  sewing  with  a  sigh,  and  resting  her 
hand  tenderly  on  her  boy's  head,  sat  quite 
still. 

"  Not  a  sound  was  heard.  The  light  in 
the  room  was  dim,  and  gloom  had  settled 
upon  the  hearts  of  both  mother  and  child. 

"Hark!  what  was  that? 


THE    ROSE    CROWN.  153 

"  A  low  tap  sounded  at  the  door,-  and 
then  it  slowly  opened ;  and  to  the  astonished 
gaze  of  the  two  sitting  by  the  hearth,  there 
appeared  the  figure  of  a  little  child.  A 
snow-white  robe  draped  his  slender  limbs. 
In  one  hand  he  bore  a  lighted  taper,  and  in 
the  other  a  most  beautiful  wreath  of  white 
roses.  His  dark  blue  eyes  shone  with  an  un- 
earthly lustre,  as  it  appeared  to  the  amazed 
and  bewildered  Heinrich,  and  his  golden 
curls  floated  upon  his  shoulders. 

" '  Oh !  mother!  mother !'  whispered  Hein- 
rich, almost  breathless,  '  it  is  the  Christ-child 
in  very  truth  come  to  me  at  last.  His  face 
is  like  Gottfried's — only  far  more  beautiful ; ' 
and  mother  and  son  sank  on  their  knees. 

"Slowly  the    little  form  advanced  to- 


154  BIG   NIGHTCAP    LETTERS. 

wards  them,  paused  before  Heinrich,  lightly 
placed  the  rose  crown  upon  his  head,  and 
then,  the  sweet  lips  parting  in  a  faint,  tender 
smile,  it  waved  its  little  hand  towards  him, 
and  disappeared  from  their  sight. 

"When  they  could  speak,  the  mother 
and  son  bowed  their  heads  in  thankful  pray- 
er, then  lifted  their  brimming  eyes  to  each 
other. 

" '  Truly  thou  hast  been  wondrously  re- 
warded, my  Heinrich,'  said  the  poor  widow ; 
'  give  the  beautiful  crown  to  me,  that  I  may 
see  what  the  dear  Christ-child  has  brought 
to  thee.' 

"  She  stirred  the  fire,  and  put  on  some 
light  wood  to  make  a  blaze,  and  then  Hein- 
rich lifted  the  crown  from  his  head.  As  he 


THE    ROSE    CROWN.  155 

did  so — oh !  wonder !  there  fell  from  it  a 
silken  purse,  and  through  the  deep  crimson 
network  they  could  see  the  yellow  gleam  of 
gold. 

"  With  the  early  blush  of  morning  little 
Gottfried  awoke,  and  the  first  thing  he  did 
was  to  run  smilingly  to  the  door  to  find  his 
shoes.  There  they  were,  in  good  truth, 
crammed  to  the  very  top  with  presents. 
Marie,  too,  awoke  at  the  moment,  and  from 
each  little  white  bed  there  arose  delighted 
exclamations  and  merry  shouts  of  joy. 

"  Now  their  mother  entered,  and  said — 
'  A  merry  Christmas  to  you,  my  children.' 

"  With  joyful  kisses  they  welcomed  her, 
and  breathlessly  showed  her  their  gifts; 


156  BIG   NIGHTCAP    LETTERS. 

then  Gottfried  exclaimed — 'Oh!  mother!  I 
have  had  such  a  pleasant  dream ;  I  dreamed 
that  the  dear  Christ-child  went  to  Heinrich 
with  the  wreath,  and  gave  it  to  him.' 

"'Well,  thou  shalt  take  it  thyself  this 
morning,  dear  child,  when  thou  hast  eaten 
thy  breakfast.' 

"  But  what  was  this  ?  Where  could  the 
wreath  be.?  The  good  mother,  faithful  to 
her  promise  had  made  it  the  evening  before, 
and  had  laid  it  on  the  table  in  the  parlor, 
but  it  was  not  to  be  found. 

"This  loss  put  the  little  Gottfried  in 
such  distress,  that  his  mother  promised  quick- 
ly to  make  another ;  and  she  was  just  pre- 
paring to  hasten  out  to  purchase  the  roses, 
when  Heinrich  ran  in,  his  mother  following ; 


THE    ROSE    CROWN.  157 

and,  scarcely  pausing  for  breath,  the  boy 
told  the  wonderful  thing  that  had  happened 
to  them  in  the  night. 

"  With  a  sudden  understanding  of  the 
strange  and  beautiful  story,  Gottfried's 
mother  took  Heinrich's  mother  aside,  and 
whispered  to  her  how  the  rose  crown  had 
mysteriously  disappeared  from  the  house  in 
the  night. 

"  The  two  mothers  gazed  into  each  other's 
faces,  and  then  looked  with  love  and  won- 
der at  the  little  unconscious  Gottfried.  Ten- 
der tears  and  smiles  struggled  in  'their  faces, 
for  they  knew  in  a  moment  that  it  was  he 
who  had  risen  in  his  sleep,  had  taken  the 
rose  crown  to  Heinrich,  and  had  laid  his 
head  upon  his  pillow  again  without  waking. 


158  BIG   NIGHTCAP    LETTERS. 

"When  they  gently  and  tenderly  told 
the  strange  tale  to  the  wondering  children, 
Heinrich,  bursting  into  tears,  threw  his  arms 
passionately  round  Gottfried's  neck,  and 
sobbed  out — '  Oh!  Gottfried  !  how  thou  must 
have  loved  me  to  have  done  this  thing,  even 
while  sleeping ; '  and  the  grateful  boy  never 
forgot  it.  He  kept  his  crown  of  roses  as 
his  dearest  treasure,  though  they  soon  be- 
came withered  and  brown ;  and  Gottfried 
and  Heinrich  were  always  friends,  though 
one  was  rich  and  the  other  poor ;  and 
each  mother  loved  and  blessed  the  child  of 
the  other  even  as  her  own." 

"  A — h  ! "  sighed  the  children,  when  the 


THE    ROSE    CROWN.  159 

story  was  finished ;  "  this  is  the  best  of  all ! 
How  those  two  German  boys  must  have 
loved  each  other  ever  after." 

"  Gottfried  must  have  been  almost  as 
good  as  Charley,"said  Clara,  with  a  glance  full 
of  love  towards  her  brother.  The  little  girl, 
with  her  sweet,  sensitive  nature,  and  gentle, 
caressing  ways,  seemed  closer  to  Charley  than 
the  rest,  though  he  loved  all  his  brothers 
and  sisters  with  his  whole  heart ;  but  Clara 
was  softer  and  tenderer,  and  murmured  out 
her  love  in  such  a  dove-like  way,  that,  next 
to  his  mother,  the  sick  boy  liked  to  have  her 
smooth  his  hair,  and  hold  his  hand,  and 
kneel  by  his  side  in  prayer ;  and  the  rest  of 
the  children  knew  this,  and  lovingly  gave 


160  BIG  NIGHTCAP    LETTERS. 

* 

Clara  "  her  place."  Not  a  shade  of  envy, 
that  black  and  wicked  passion,  ever  entered 
their  hearts ;  for,  as  I  have  many  times  writ- 
ten, this  was  the  home  of  LOVE. 


THE  SIXTH  LETTEK. 

THE  HUNT  FOR  A  STEAMBOAT. 

To  Johnny. 

DEAR  LITTLE  Jomonr": — I  have  heard  such 
a  cunning  little  story  about  two  little  children 
that  live  in  New  York,  that  I  have  written 
it  out  for  you ;  I  shall  begin  it,  "  Once 
upon  a  time  " — the  way  you  like  best.  Here 
it  is: 

THE  HUNT  FOR  A  STEAMBOAT. 

"  Once  upon  a  time  little  Harry  was  play- 
ing in  the  parlor,  and  his  kind  mother  was 
11 


162  BIG   NIGHTCAP    LETTERS. 

reading.  Presently  the  door  opened,  and  a 
lady  entered,  holding  by  the  hand  the  dear- 
est little  bit  of  a  girl  you  ever  saw,  about 

* 

three  years  old,  with  such  sweet  blue  eyes 
and  soft  curling  hair,  that  she  looked  almost 
like  a  fairy. 

"Harry's  mother  was  very  glad  to  see 
the  lady;  she  kisse^her  and  little  Nannie, 
and  made  them  sit  on  the  very  best  sofa,  and 
Harry  kissed  Nannie,  and  everybody  seemed 
very  much  pleased. 

"  After  saying  what  a  very  fine  day  it  was, 
just  as  all  the  grown  people  do  when  they 
begin  to  talk,  Nannie's  mamma  began  to  tell 
Harry's  mamma  something  very  wonderful, 
when,  all  at  once,  they  saw  Harry's  eyes 
opened  about  as  big  round  as  a  pair  of 


THE  HUNT   FOR   A    STEAMBOAT.  163 

saucers,  and  a  dozen  ears  seemed  to  have 
sprouted  out  all  over  his  head ;  and  he  was 
listening  to  the  wonderful  story  with  every 
one  of  them. 

"Harry's  mamma  thought  that  would 
never  do,  and  she  said — '  My  son,  Nannie's 
mamma  and  I  want  to  talk  secrets,  and  it 
is  not  right  for  such  a  li ttle  boy  as  you,  to 
hear  them  ;  so  take  the  dear  little  girl  out  of 
the  room,  and  show  her  every  thing  she 
wants  to  see.  Mind,  dear !  show  her  every 
thing? 

"  So  Harry  took  Nannie's  hand,  and  led 
her  out  of  the  room.  He  felt  quite  bashful 
at  first,  and  when  he  got  into  the  hall  and 
had  shut  the  door,  he  dropped  her  hand ; 
and  then  the  two  children  stood  and  looked 


164  BIG   NIGHTCAP    LETTERS. 

at  each  other  like  two  pussy  cats  on  a  fence ; 
only  they  looked  a  great  deal  prettier,  be- 
cause, you  know,  neither  of  them  had  any 
fierce  whiskers  or  long  claws.  Not  they,  in- 
deed !  I  suppose  Harry  will  have  whiskers 
one  of  these  days,  if  he  lives  to  be  a  man ; 
but  Nannie  will  never  have  any,  because  if 
she  Jives  a  thousand  years  she  will  never  be 
a  great,  rough  man,  but  a  beautiful  little 
woman,  which  is  a  great  comfort  to  think  of. 

"  At  last  Harry  said — '  Say,  Nannie, 
what  do  you  want  to  see  ? ' 

"  '  I  want  to  tee  a  'teamboat.' 

"  '  A  steamboat ! '  exclaimed  Harry. 

" '  Ess,  a  'teamboat — big  one ! '  said  little 
Nannie. 

"  Harry  looked  puzzled ;  but  he  took  her 


THE    HUNT    FOR    A    STEAMBOAT.  165 

band  again,  and  led  her  very  carefully  np 
the  long  flight  of  stairs,  and  into  every  room 
on  the  second  floor.  They  looked  under  the 
beds  and  into  the  band-boxes,  opened  all  the 
bureau  drawers  and  wardrobe  doors,  peer- 
ed down  into  the  bath-tub,  and  almost  tum- 
bled in,  and  couldn't  find  a  steamboat.  Then, 
they  went  up  stairs  again,  and  all  over 
the  rooms  in  the  third  story — no  steamboat 
there. 

"  Then  they  went  up  stairs  again,  and  all 
over  the  rooms  in  the  top  of  the  house, 
opened  all  the  cook's  bundles,  the  waiter's 
boxes,  the  chambermaid's  trunk,  and  the 
laundress's  umbrella ;  but  not  a  single  steam- 
boat was  to  be  seen. 

"  What  was  poor  Harry  to  do  ? 


166  BIG  NIGHTCAP   LETTERS. 

"  He  must  mind  his  mamma ;  and  Nannie 
kept  saying — '  I  want  to  tee  a  'teamboat.' 

"  All  of  a  sudden  Harry  spied  a  globe  of 
the  world  in  one  corner  of  the  attic,  and  he 
cried  out — l  Here,  Nannie,  let's  look  on  this 
world  and  see  if  we  can  find  one.' 


"  So  down  they  nestled  close  together, 
and  turned  the  world  round  and  round,  but, 
strange  to  tell,  there  was  not  a  single  steam- 
boat sailing  on  it.  It  was  really  too  bad. 


THE    HUNT   FOR   A    STEAMBOAT.  167 

"  They  came  down  stairs  again,  and  then 
a  bright  thought  struck  Harry — '  Oh,  yes ! ' 
he  exclaimed,  '  I  know  where  a  steamboat  is. 
Dear  me  !  certainly !  Come,  Nannie,  hurry.' 

."  Down  they  went  to  the  hall,  and  Harry 
put  on  his  cap,  and  opened  the  front  door, 
and  the  children  went  out.  Hand  in  hand 
they  trotted  merrily  along,  both  delighted 
to  think  that  at  last  they  were  on  the  track 
of  a  steamboat. 

"  After  walking  a  long  way,  they  came 
to  a  rough  board  fence,  and  Harry  peeped 
through  a  knot-hole  to  see  what  was  inside. 
He  looked  so  long,  that  Nannie  cried  impa- 
tiently— '  Let  me  see  the  'teamboat.' 

"'No,  it  isn't,'  said  Harry;  'it's  some 
boys  playing  ball.  Come  and  look.' 


168  BIG   NIGHTCAP   LETTERS. 

"Nannie  went  close  to  the  fence,  and 
stood  on  the  very  tips  of  her  little  toes,  but 
the  knot-hole  was  too  high ;  so  Harry  lifted 
her  with  all  his  strength,  and  she  had  a  fine 
time  seeing  the  boys  playing  ball. 

"  As  he  let  her  come  down  rather  sud- 
denly, she  caught  her  frock  in  a  splinter  of 
wood  in  the  fence,  and  it  was  torn  from  top 
to  bottom.  l  Oh,  my ! '  said  Nannie,  looking 
at  her  dress,  '  what  a  gate  hole ;  oh,  my ! ' 

"  Oh,  never  mind  it,'  cried  Harry,  '  that's 
nothing ; '  and  he  laughed  so  merrily,  that 
Nannie  thought  to  tear  dresses  was  great 
fun,  and  laughed  too. 

"  On  they  went,  hand  in  hand,  and  every 
fence  they  came  to  where  there  were  no 
houses,  they  peeped  through  and  searched 


THE   HUNT   FOR   A    STEAMBOAT.  169 

for  the  steamboat ;  and  they  scrambled  and 
fell  against  so  many  rough  boards,  that  Nan- 
nie's pretty  little  new  hat  that  her  kind 
grandmamma  had  just  given  her,  was  all  bent 
and  torn  and  twisted,  till  from  a  nice  little 
round  hat,  it  came  to  be  a  queer-looking, 
five-cornered  one,  with  one  end  of  ribbon 
over  her  nose,  and  another  sticking  out  be- 
hind ;  and  the  beautiful  lace  cap  inside  was 
only  fit  for  the  rag-bag.  Did  you  ever  hear 
any  thing  like  it  ? 

"  Well,  the  dear  little  things  wandered 
on,  Harry  knowing  that  he  was  minding  his 
mamma,  like  a  good  boy.  He  was  very 
happy ;  because,  you  know,  children  that  are 
obedient  and  good  are  never  any  thing  else. 
Of  course  not. 


170  BIG   NIGHTCAP    LETTERS. 

"And  little  Nannie's  lovely  blue  eyes 
were  very  busy  looking  all  over  the  world 
for  the  steamboat. 

"  At  last  they  came  to  an  open  space — I 
believe,  in  Seventy-second  street,  where  the 
Central  Park  is ;  and  a  very  amiable-looking 
policeman,  who  fortunately  at  that  time 
was  wide  awake,  happened  to  look  that 
way. 

"  He  was  very  much  astonished  when  he 
saw  such  little  creatures  all  alone ;  and 
Nannie,  looking  as  if  she  had  been  in  the 
wars  ;  but,  in  spite  of  her  torn  dress,  looking 
like  just  what  she  was — the  tender  little  pet 
of  a  household,  watched  over,  and  loved,  and 
cared  for  night  and  day ;  and  Harry,  too,  it 
was  plain  to  see,  with  his  bright  eyes  and 


THE    HUNT    FOR    A    STEAMBOAT.  171 

manly  bearing,  was  of  gentle  birth  and  breed- 
ing. 

"  So  the  policeman  walked  up  to  them, 
and  said — '  I  suppose  this  is  Tom  Thumb  and 
his  wife  out  for  a  walk.' 

" '  No,  it  isn't,'  said  Harry ;  *  my  name  is 
Harry/ 

"  c  And  what  is  yours,  little  lady  ? ' 

"  '  My  name  'ittle  Nannie.' 

" '  "Where  did  you  come  from  ? ' 

" '  Home,'  said  Harry. 

"  '  Where  is  home  2 ' 

" '  Why,  in  Thirty-second  street,  to  be 
sure ;  don't  you  know  ? ' 

"  *  Did  you  run  away  ? '  said  the  police- 
man. 

" '  No,'  said  Harry,  and  his  eyes  blazed 


172  BIG   NIGHTCAP    LETTERS. 

with  indignation,  '  I'm  minding  mamma ;  she 
told  me  to  show  Nannie  every  thing,  and 
Nannie  wanted  to  see  a  steamboat,  and  I'm 
finding  one  for  her  now ! ' 

"  At  this  the  policeman  laughed,  and  then 
he  looked  so  kindly  at  the  children,  that  I 
suspect  he  had  a  dozen  children  of  his  own  at 
his  house,  and  that  made  him  love  every 
other  little  child.  Why,  bless  your  dear  lit- 
tle heart,  I  love  all  the  little  children  in  the 
whole  world,  because  I  love  you  so  dearly. 

"  Then  the  policeman  said — '  Well,  Har- 
ry, you  are  a  long  way  from  home ;  and  I 
think  you  had  better  put  off  the  steamboat- 
hunting  business  till  some  other  day.  Your 
mother  may  think  you  and  Nannie  are  a 
little  too  young  to  travel  about  the  world  by 


THE   HUNT   FOR   A    STEAMBOAT.  173 

yourselves.  Come;  I  will  go  back  with 
you. 

"  It  was  very  fortunate  lie  did,  for  though 
Harry  knew  very  well  what  street  he  lived 
in,  he  did  not  know  how  to  get  to  it ;  and  it 
would  have  been  a  sad  thing  for  the  dear 
little  creatures  if  they  had  been  lost.  But 
now  the  good  policeman  took  Nannie  in  his 
arms,  because  she  was  getting  very  tired,  and 
Harry  by  the  hand,  and  they  all  got  into  a 
railroad  car,  and  before  long  were  at  the 
house. 

"  But  oh  !  what  a  distracted  house !  For 
when  Nannie's  mother  had  finished  the  won- 
derful secret,  and  wanted  to  leave,  the  chil- 
dren were  not  to  be  found.  They  searched 
the  house  ;  they  examined  the  bath-tubs  and 


174 


BIG   NIGHTCAP    LETTERS. 


wash-tubs ;  they  went  out  into  the  garden 
and  down  into  the  cellar,  but  they  were  not 
to  be  found  ;  and  then  the  weeping,  terrified 
mothers  went  out  into  the  street,  and  asked 
everybody  they  met,  if  they  had  seen  the 
children. 

"  The  waiter,  who  was  just  setting  the 
table  for  dinner,  rushed  round  the  corner, 
brandishing  the  carving-knife  like  a  pistol, 


and  frightened  a  fashionable  young  gentle- 
man out  of  all  his  five  wits,  for  he  thought  it 


THE   HUNT    FOE   A    STEAMBOAT. 


175 


was  a  crazy  man,  trying  to  kill  him ;  and 
when  he  turned  round  he  was  scared  again, 
for  there  was  the  laundress,  who  had  started 
out  with  a  wet  shirt  in  her  hands,  which  she 
was  just  starching ;  there  she  was,  waving  it 
about  in  the  wind,  tike  a  flag  of  distress,  and 
crying  as  hard  as  she  could. 

"  Then  the  waiter  dropped  the  carving- 
knife,  and  flew  up  the  street,  while  the  fat 
cook,  who  had  left  a  pudding  half-made  in 
the  kitchen,  ran  after  him,  dropping  her  pud- 


176  BIG  NIGHTCAP    LETTERS. 

ding-stick,  and  wheezing  dreadfully;  and 
away  in  the  distance,  they  saw  the  chamber- 
maid, with  the  broomstick  in  her  hand,  and 
her  hair  all  about  her  ears.  »  She  looked  so 
like  a  witch,  from  grief  and  fright,  that  a3 
she  disappeared,  the  people  looking  after  her 
were  sure  she  had  mounted  the  broomstick 
the  very  next  moment,  and  had  flown  over 
the  tops  of  the  houses. 

"  Dear  me  !  what  a  terrible  time  it  was ! 
But  you  see  they  all  loved  Harry  so  much, 
that  they  were  almost  crazy,  and  that  made 
them  cut  up  all  these  didoes. 

"  All  came  back  lamenting,  for  no  children 
had  been  found ;  and  the  distressed  mothers 
were  just  writing  a  note  to  send  to  the  police- 
office,  to  order  the  whole  city  to  be  searched, 


THE   HUNT   FOR   A   STEAMBOAT.          177 

when — a  quick  ring  at  the  bell —  Could  it 
be  ?  Out  they  all  rushed,  mothers,  cook, 
waiter,  chambermaid,  laundress,  the  cat,  and 
the  dog.  The  door  was  opened,  and,  oh,  joy- 
ful sight !  there  stood  the  children  and  the 
policeman,  all  laughing  together. 

"  No  wonder  they  all  screamed  and  cried, 
and  laughed  and  talked,  all  in  a  bunch.  No- 
body cared  a  pin  for  Nannie's  torn  dress  and 
five-cornered  bonnet,  when  the  darling  child 
was  safe,  and  hugged  tight  to  her  mother's 
breast;  and  Harry  and  his  mother  had  a 
grand  kissing  time  too.  Why,  dear  me  ! 
they  almost  wanted  to  kiss  the  good  police- 
man, they  were  so  glad ;  not  quite,  though ; 
but  they  gave  him  what  he  thought  was 
quite  astonishing — something  that  came  out 
12 


178  BIG   NIGHTCAP    LETTERS. 

of  a  purse,  and  shone  like  gold ;  and  between 
you  and  me,  it  was  gold. 

"  And  Harry's  mother  was  not  the  least 
angry  with  him,  when  she  heard  that  he  was 
such  a  good  boy,  and  was  only  minding  his 
mamma  when  he  went  all  over  the  world 
with  Nannie  to  find  a  steamboat :  no,  indeed  ! 
She  kissed  him  again.  But  let  me  tell  you 
as  a  great  secret,  that  she  was  very  careful 
after  that  to  tell  Harry  to  look  for  steam- 
boats, or  any  thing  else  little  girls  or  he  might 
want  to  see,  inside  of  the  house;  and  al- 
though it  is  many  months  since  this  happen- 
ed, I  know  that  Harry  and  Nannie  have  not 
been  steamboat-hunting  since  ;  but  they  are 
both  good,  lovely  children,  and  both  mind 
their  mammas." 


THE   HUNT   FOB   A    STEAMBOAT.  179 

"  Oh,  dear !  "  exclaimed  Johnny,  "  my 
story  is  tip-top  !  I  wish  you  would  read  it 
right  over  again,  mamma." 

"  Yes,  mamma,  do !  "  cried  all  the  rest. 
"It  is  so  interesting.  Dear  little  Nannie, 
she's  a  darling  ! " 

"  I  wonder  if  her  grandmother  gave  her 
a  new  hat,"  said  Minnie.  "  I  would,  if  /was 
her  grandmother." 

The  children  laughed  at  'the  idea  of  Min- 
nie's being  a  grandmother,  and  Harry  said 
— "  Come,  sit  on  my  lap,  grandmother,  and 
let  me  see  if  you  know  your  letters  yet." 
Minnie  did  not  like  this  much,  but  as  Harry 
called  her  his  "  dear  little  pet "  the  next  mo- 
ment, she  forgave  him  immediately. 

"  But  Aunt  Fanny  has  written  something 


180  BIG   NIGHTCAP    LETTERS. 

else  in  this  letter,"  said  the  mother.  "  Shall 
I  read  it,  or  repeat  the  story  ? " 

"  Oh !  read  all  the  letter  this  time"  cried 
the  children, "  and  the  story  again  to-morrow 
night." 

The  little  mother  read  on. 

"  And  now,  my  dear  children,  I  have 
sent  you  six  stories ;  and  if  any  one  will  count 
the  boots  and  shoes  in  the  first  Nightcap 
"book,  they  will  *find  that  there  are  the  sur- 
prising number  of  thirteen  of  you ! — a  baker's 
dozen. 

"  Let  me  see  how  many  are  left. 

"Minnie  and  Willie,  and  Bennie  and 
Lillie,  and  dear  little  Fanny,  my  namesake, 
and  Katie  and  Pet.  I  think  I  will  write  to 
this  dear  little  band  collectively,  and  the 


.   THE   HUNT   FOR   A    STEAMBOAT.  181 

stories  shall  make  the  l  Little  Nightcap  Let- 
ters ; '  and  the  little  darlings  shall  have  them 
all  to  themselves." 

"  Oh,  yes !  yes !  yes !  that  will  be  a  grand 
plan ! "  cried  the  children.  "  Did  you  ever 
hear  of  such  a  sensible  Aunt  Fanny  ?  She 
makes  it  just  as  we  like  it." 

"  If  you  like  this  plan,"  Aunt  Fanny  goes 
on  to  say,  "  then  the  l  Big  Nightcap  Letters ' 
are  finished  with  this  story  sent  to  Johnny ; 
and  that  you  will  all  grow  wiser,  and  better, 
and  fatter  over  them,  is  the  loving  wish  of 
your 

"  Aimr  FAOTTT." 

And  so  the  Big  Nightcap  Letters  were  end- 
ed ;  and  the  children  went  off  to  bed  good, 


182  BIG   NIGHTCAP    LETTERS. 

thankful,  and  content,  and  rose  the  next  day 
good,  thankful,  and  content. 

Pray  Heaven,  dear  little  reader,  you  may 
always  do  the  same. 


THE    END. 


Jmprtatt  $jteto 


PUBLISHED   BT 


D.  APFLETON  &  CO.,  346  &  348  BROADWAY. 


snss  MciNTosH's  JUVENILE  LIBBABT. 

1  volfl.  18mo.,  87  cents  each. 


i.  GEACE  AND  CLABA;  or, 

Be  Just  as  well  as  Generous. 
ri.  ELLEN  LESLIE;  or,  The 

Keward  of  Self-Control 

ui.  FLORENCE  AENOTX;  or, 

Is  She  Generous? 

IT.  EMILY  HEEBEET;  or,  The 

Happy  Home. 


V.  ROSE  AND  LlLLIE  SlAIT* 
HOPE  ;  or,  The  Power  ol 
Conscience. 

vi.  JESSIE    GRAHAM  ;    or, 

Friends   Dear,   but  Truth 
Dearer. 

viz.  BLIND  ALICE. 


"  Mise  Mclntosh  is  the  most  fascinating  writer  of  Juvenile  Books  of  th« 
present  day.  She  endeavors  to  enforce  good  principles,  while  she  at  tha 
Mme  time  caters  for  the  amusement  of  children." 


TWO  HEW  JUVENILES, 

BY  THE  AUTHOR  OF  THE  "HEIR  OF  EEDCLYFTE." 
L 

RICHARD  THE  FEARLESS ;  OR,  THE  YOUNG  DUKE. 
By  tha  author  of  the  "  Heir  of  Redclyfie."  With  Il- 
lustrations, 1  vol.  16rno.,  price  62  cents. 


THE  LANCES  OF  LYNWOOD.    With  Illustrations,  1 
vol.  16mo.,  75  cents. 

No  English  writer  has  succeeded  in  BO  faithfully  portraying  th« 
human  passions  as  the  talented  author  who  has  given  to  the  world  '  Heartn- 
ease '  and  tha  '  Heir  of  Kedclyffe.'  Her  Juvenile  "Writings  have  a  charm 
of  historical  interest  thrown  around  them,  which  cannot  fail  to  render  her 
works  as  much  admired  by  young  people  as  by  those  more  advanced  " 


This  book  is  DUE  on  the  last 
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The  big  nigut 
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